


Thomas Infinity Inverted- Reflections in Broken Mirrors

by FSAppaneestyUOZC99999999Supremum



Series: Thomas Infinity Inverted Series [1]
Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: F/F, F/M, M/M, Multi, Other Additional Tags to Be Added
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-19
Updated: 2020-03-19
Packaged: 2021-03-01 04:53:39
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 60,270
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23219560
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FSAppaneestyUOZC99999999Supremum/pseuds/FSAppaneestyUOZC99999999Supremum
Summary: Years after the events concerning her crybaby Ash's doppelganger in Reflection Cave and after her victory in the Kalos League; Mirror Serena is in for a surprise when a familiar and fascinating stranger quite literally drops in on her at the most inopportune time. And what is it he keeps babbling on about 'Inverse Omega Omnispheres' and 'Bizarro World Counterparts?!'
Relationships: Ash Ketchum/Molly Hale, Original Male Character/Adult Bonnie, Original Male Character/Serena
Series: Thomas Infinity Inverted Series [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1669435





	1. Chapter One: Mirror-Mirror on the wall; who's the greatest Pokemon Master of them all

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything nor do I make any profits off of this whatsoever._

_Dedication: Once again this is dedicated to my fellow Fanfiction writer Rey AKA Dimension Distorter, and to you as well my faithful reader; if you have stuck with my unique writing this long then you deserve that dedication._

_Description: Years after the events concerning her crybaby Ash's doppelganger in Reflection Cave and after her victory in the Kalos League; Mirror Serena is in for a surprise when a familiar and fascinating stranger quite literally drops in on her at the most inopportune time. And what is it he keeps babbling on about an 'Inverse Omega Omnisphere?'_

Chapter One: Mirror-Mirror on the wall; who's the greatest Pokemon Master of them all

It was just a pipe dream, becoming the ultimate Pokemon Master; a fool's errand, a naïve end goal for stupid little boys and girls who thought that they could be the best like no one ever was. The world was too big a place for a true champion and master of Pokemon to be crowned; the universe too vast, the endless hierarchy of aspiring Pokemon Masters made it impossible for one to truly climb to the top. And assuming one ever did manage to stand at the summit, someone would come along who was better and effectively dethrone them. It was a cruel irony, having the capacity to grow stronger without limit and yet be unable to truly reach a level of infinity. It was completely paradoxical, and yet one had to wonder if there would be anything left to aspire towards once they hit that point.

For one miss Serena Yvonne, the current Champion of Kalos, Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh, and Unova alike in title but not position; she knew this all to be true with absolute certainty. For all the power she had amassed over the years, it was not enough; and it was never going to be enough. Her Delphox and the other members of her battle hardened team including Sylveon, Pangaroo, Corsola, and others she had caught on her journeys across the other Regions; were all stronger than she ever thought possible. Yet no matter how strong she and her teammates became she couldn't save everyone, especially not the ones who mattered most to her.

' _Stop it! There's no way to bring him back and if there was it's an ability I'll never possess_.' She bitterly thought while scrunching her eyes shut in an effort to stay the tears a little longer. She was currently trying to relax at the Pokemon Center in Lumiose Village after trekking through Route 5 and challenging the Battle Chateau once again past Route 7; trying to distract herself from the pain of a decade ago by pouring everything she had into Pokemon battles, but it was hard.

She was a Grand Duchess and had battled many of the others; only losing to the likes of Diantha on rare occasions though she won more battles with the current Kalos League champ than she lost. Upon spending the day challenging her fellow Grand Duchesses and Dukes Serena and her Pokemon were at their limit, and despite trying to push herself to the limit so as to be too tired to think about the aching pain in her heart; she knew that today would be tough for her no matter what, even while scarfing down a delicious home-cooked meal she couldn't rid herself of it.

"Oh man, talk about working up a fierce appetite." Serena said, her voice muffled and her mouth full of food as her Pokemon readily agreed with her statement. She looked over at her Delphox and the other members of her team with pride; knowing they were her rock and anchor on days like today. They were always so cheerful and happy, almost as much for her sake as their own. Her Delphox had the ability known as Battle Bond, and ability that was one-in-a-million as far as rarity was concerned and could occur in Pokemon like Delphox and Greninja. So far, no other Pokemon in the entire world were known to have this unique ability, but when using it Serena's Delphox and her could tap into something called the Bond Phenomena.

When that Mega Evolution-like transformation overtook Delphox, she resembled her trainer's attire and hair color among other things. But most impressively, her already formidable powers skyrocketed drastically. It was with this legendary power, that Serena and Delphox had clinched the final match in the Pokemon League. Her opponent had been the cruel administrator of Team Flare known as Alain, who had rigged his mega ring during the finals and increased his mega Charizard X's mega evolution far beyond the norm. It wouldn't have been a fair match normally, but Serena Delphox had pulled through despite all odds, and Calm Mind definitely helped to further increase her immense power.

Despite Serena's surprise victory then it had been an extremely close call; way too close actually. That Charizard was ridiculously overpowered. If it had used moves like Dragon Dance or Belly Drum like some Charizard have been known to use… it would have been over for her and Delphox for sure. Despite their prized admin losing in the initial test run however; Team Flare was still confident in their ability to destroy most of the population on the planet. Bonnie's impeccably close bond with the Zygarde Core AKA Squishy had been one of their select few saving graces that day; along with Clement's brave and noble sacrifice and his last magic spell to end all magic spells. He had given his life to bring down the mystical artifact the Team Flare's Magicians were using to control Zygarde like a puppet.

As for Ash, Serena hesitated to even think about the poor boy whom she had taken under her wing in an effort to hopefully toughen him up a little; he had definitely come through for them during the Kalos League crisis and stepped up his game to a whole new level, but the loss of their favorite master of magic had hit the hypersensitive boy as hard as it did the rest of them and they all coped with his death in different ways. Bonnie had started taking up the practice of magic in her brother's stead and even lead the Lumiose Village's Pokemon gym; her skills in all known areas of magic vastly outstripping her brothers at this point but like with Serena and her Pokemon battling Bonnie was never satisfied no matter how strong she became.

Serena didn't have the heart to tell the poor girl that it was unlikely she'd find a spell to reawaken the dead; especially since it seemed to be the only thing keeping Bonnie going at this point. She hadn't believed in all the stories surrounding people who had mystical skills until she met Clement, and despite him only knowing the mere basics like getting into and out of places of high security without being caught, and even providing means of location via that magic circle of his; Bonnie was in a league all to herself.

Clement had tried his absolute hardest to carry on his family's magical lineage, but for the most part he had been a stage magician at best. Bonnie had become the true sorcerer in that family; her mystical skills blossoming after the shock of losing her sibling wore off. Ash had disappeared altogether from the world and nobody had heard from him since. Thankfully though, there were sightings of him in recent years; thus proving he was still alive. He was seen training in the extreme conditions of none other than Mount Silver in Johto. Apparently he had gotten a wardrobe change and was dressed in almost all red. Serena missed him more than she ever thought she could, and could use the company; if nothing else, at least she wouldn't have to cry over Clement alone, with nobody but her Pokemon for company.

Serena did what she did best and continued pouring her emotions over Clement into her battles; fighting with everything she and her Pokemon had. She and her Delphox were more in sync than ever, and the rate at which her starter was growing in strength was truly astonishing, but it wasn't enough. Serena realized a long time ago that she was never going to be satisfied with her journey; never going to be content with the power she already had, not when she hadn't been strong enough to save Clement. She would be the last person to admit this out loud to anyone, but Clement had been more than a friend to her at the time of his death; the athletic but dorky magic-loving young man had been something of an eccentric in Serena's opinion.

She had never really believed in magic, but she couldn't deny that for whatever weird reason Clement got them the desired results time and time again. He had always had a knack for finding that which had been lost, and a plethora of other skills that seemed almost like it could've been real magic. Now Bonnie had become a fully realized sorceress and was drowning her sorrows by pursuing the same passion as her brother to an almost obsessive degree. Serena wondered if she should pay the girl and her devastated father a visit. She was already technically in the neighborhood so why the fuck not?

Once her mind was made up Serena quickly explained the plan to her current team roster, and they all agreed that she could use a break from all this battling as she promptly returned them to their Pokeballs. She stood up straight, only to see a boy in his late teens who had been sitting in the booth adjacent to hers turn his attention towards her. She sent him one of her infamous Seviper glares and he immediately looked away while blushing. She scoffed at this. ' _Jeez, all I had to do was glare at him and he immediately turned tail and looked away. Just once would it be so wrong to find someone who isn't going to back down when I do that? Even the Alpha needs some love you know, it's just a question of whether or not you people have big enough balls to come and get me_.' She grumbled irritably. Honestly, with the way she was feeling... she could've really used a one-night-stand to decompress and vent her emotions slightly, but it looked like that wasn't going to happen the way she wanted it to.

She knew it wasn't because she was unattractive, quite the opposite really. She had recently undergone a wardrobe change; sporting a white straw hat with a pink ribbon atop her honey blonde head and a pink sundress that hugged all of her mouthwatering womanly curves. She had some blemishes here and there, and freckles that dotted her nose and along her cheeks, but she considered those and the select few scars she had accumulated on her journey across the world to be marks of pride and proof of her humanity. Despite the overall feminine look of her main attire she also wore some skull earrings and spiked cuffs around her wrists that basically throw the whole thing off, and made her much more intimidating. She wore fingerless gloves that merged with her cuffs, and she was currently 29-years-old with the occasional strand of silver in her shoulder length dirty blonde hair.

She quickly shot the boy one more look as if she were daring him to check her out again, but she was mildly disappointed when he didn't look back, and instead opted to resume what she was originally planning by walking out of the PC on South Boulevard; making her way towards Prism Tower where she knew Bonnie would likely be holed up. Nurse Jenny had been as melancholy as ever today, but Serena wouldn't trust anyone else with the care and treatment of her Pokemon. Now with her team raring to go, she was set to pay her friend a visit. It had been exactly 10 years today since Clement's death and Serena knew he would want her to let go and live a little. He wouldn't want Bonnie wasting all of her magical potential on finding a way to bring him back. Still, given the circumstances in which he died, she knew he didn't have any right to question their life choices and how they coped with his death. She was angry beyond belief with him, and if Bonnie ever managed to find a way to bring him back, Serena would have some very choice and pointed words for the upstart magician.

That said, Bonnie was 19-years-old now and had her whole life ahead of her to journey with her legendary Zygarde, Squishy and her Dedenne as well as her brother's Pokemon; whom had somehow appeared somewhere safe from the explosion that took her brother's life. She could find a suitable boyfriend and someday husband for herself. Frankly, Bonnie needed someone to look after her and take care of her at this point, because her obsession with resurrecting her dearest brother couldn't have been healthy; especially not if it resulted in her looking into some really dark spells and enchantments. Serena felt a degree of responsibility for the young woman, and needed to compensate for Clement's inability to look after her at this point.

Serena was just passing the Coiffure Clips barber shop leading up to Estival avenue when she did a double-take. ' _Am I really seeing who I think I'm seeing_?' she queried internally as she saw none other than Bonnie standing outside of the barber shop; dressed in a different sort of attire than Serena had ever seen her in and looking like she was going to be sick, but it just had to be her. Serena ran straight up to the lemon haired, blue-eyed beauty with surprise; having never seen Bonnie at any sort of barber shop before. She knew the sorceress was really keen about using her magic to retain a constant hair length and sheen among other things. She was frugal and if magic could save her money then she would use it in a heartbeat. That, combined with her earnings as a Gym Leader, had left her pretty much set for life even at her current youthful age.

So, what she was doing at a barber shop when she could just use magic to polish herself up was beyond Serena. What was even weirder still was that there was something distinctly different about this girl; for starters, her skin was a darker peach color than the Bonnie she knew, and her hair a slightly darker yellow. Another thing that was off was that she looked sicker, and more nauseous than Serena had ever seen, and one thing she knew about sorcerers was that they supposedly never got sick. The one thing that could have given her away as not being Bonnie, was the very conspicuous Mega Bracelet strapped to her wrist; because unless the Lumiose Village's Gym Leader had gotten into Mega Evolution since the last time Serena was in town, she doubted this was the same person.

"Hey um… is that really you Bonnie?" Serena questioned the girl anyways upon reaching her, and Bonnie's eyes widened slightly upon seeing her.

"No um... sorry miss; you must have me confused with someone else. My name is Eureka." The girl said in a voice that sounded way too similar to Bonnie's to be a coincidence; something that Serena found really odd. She wore what appeared to be some sort of sideways eight symbol in pure white on her metallic golden sundress, which was even odder still. That same symbol was branded on her curious looking keystone instead in kaleidoscopic rainbow colors instead of the usual symbol that represented Mega Evolution. That was the third odd thing about her, and it could have won this girl the triple Yahtzee in the weirdness category.

The Faux-Bonnie shuffled somewhat nervously. "I've actually been here too long. I'm supposed to be waiting for a friend of mine and he said he'd be back soon but I think he might have gotten lost or distracted by something so… I'll just go looking for him. He's really OCD and ADD so he very quickly gets caught up in his excitement over seeing new places, people, and things; know what I mean?" the girl stammered unsurely yet with surprising force and steadiness; evidently still intimidated by Serena's overwhelming presence like most other people, but clearly an alpha-female in her own right. She quickly ran off in the direction opposite of where Serena was heading; much to the honey blonde champion trainer's confusion.

' _Well that was fucking weird_.' She huffed irately, annoyed with herself for having made a stupid mistake. Clearly that girl, however like Bonnie she was in voice and appearance, was not the same girl at all. Still, something about this situation seemed familiar to Serena. It tugged at the back of her mind. Yet, she couldn't quite place it and shrugged nonchalantly before resuming her fast trek to Prism Tower, the only major landmark the tiny town really had and the very heart of the Kalos Region. She had heard that saying about how everyone had a double in life, but never took that to be true until now. Perhaps this girl was just eerily similar to Bonnie, or maybe the similarities seemed more than they were to Serena because she was thinking about the girl nonstop.

The village had undergone maintenance and repairs since Lysandre had laid waste to it using the powers of his mystical mind controlling device; the Megalith comprised entirely of mega evolution energy, and Zygarde as well. That had not been a good day, for many reasons, but Serena knew she would need to find a way to move both herself and Bonnie past it. She owed Clement that much at least; even if the bastard had gone and left her alone in the world.

It took less than five minutes for her to reach the Centrico Plaza at the very heart of the town, a small plaza with a very big landmark. She could see Prism Tower growing steadily larger the closer she got to it; the giant tower a stark contrast to the tininess of the rest of the village. She was just nearing the entrance to the gym when she was startled by a resounding cry of "Incoming!" She was given just enough warning to look up, at which point she saw a man plummeting to the ground from Prism Tower's infamous trap door... leading down a slide to an opening about twenty or so feet above the unforgiving pavement.

Serena internally cringed as the man hit the white cement with a dull thud; deciding she should at least check and make sure he was okay before marching in to demand why Bonnie had sent someone shooting down the trapdoor. She honestly thought that Bonnie and her brother had deactivated the protective wards that kept the unrulier challengers, and even intruders in check, but evidently she was wrong. The trap door was just one of the many less mystical fortifications protecting the tower; though the way it moved to match an intruder's current location within the tower was definitely the work of magic. This feature ensured the gym leader could always rid themselves of any pesky little annoyances should they come along. Still though, Serena felt like she should have at least gotten this man's side of the story before she naturally assumed the worst of him.

"Uh, you okay there bud?" She finally asked as she carefully approached him; treading on the side of caution in case he was the roughneck type, not wanting any trouble in case there was a valid reason Bonnie tossed him out. She was surprised to the point of giving a startled, undignified yelp as the man stood to his feet so fast, and so suddenly it was amazing he didn't break the ground beneath his fight.

"Oh yes, I'm quite alright, thank you miss. I noticed the Gym Leader was otherwise occupied, and I've always wanted to slide down a chute and trapdoor so that's another thing I can cross off my bucket list." The man replied with a strange accent.

"Oh hell no! You're coming with me! Don't you worry; I'll set that woman straight. She and I go way back you know." Serena commanded him authoritatively, not really giving him a second glance, but watching him brush his tweed jacket off slightly.

"Oh that really isn't… _whoa_! Hey, wait a bloody minute already; I need to get my staff." He called after her, and she sighed in exasperation. She let him go for a quick second to collect what looked like some sort of metallic walking stick or magic staff like the one Clement possessed, but with another one of those curious key stones attached to the bulbous top of it. She quickly noted that this strange man was probably the friend of this Eureka person from before, but reckoned she would find him before long. Besides, if the man really wanted to challenge Lumiose Village's gym; she wasn't about to let Bonnie wallow in her own misery when she had challengers to face.

He was just finished picking up his staff and about to open his mouth to further explain himself, when Serena grabbed his other hand and dragged him off without another word. "Jesus woman, this really isn't necessary!" He tried, but Serena wasn't listening as she gripped his left wrist and continued pulling him in towards Prism Tower. He stopped arguing by this point and quickly seemed to realize the futility of struggling any further as she pulled him into the elevator leading up to the top floor. As they stepped inside the elevator together, he started doing what seemed to be some kind of calculations, given the way he was making emphatic gestures akin to writing pen on paper.

"What are you doing?!" She demanded irritably; the man's perpetually caffeinated, hyper-active mannerisms irritating her slightly. He didn't answer right away, and when he did his response left her mouth hanging.

"I'm calculating the geosynchronous orbit of a galaxy cluster with 100 octillion stars and planets; orbiting around an ultra-massive black hole which acts as its central holding glue. I'm genuinely curious how long it takes for a cluster of that size to complete a full revolution around that black hole, without falling in. Granted, I also have to factor in the orbital motion of the cluster and how quickly such a colossal celestial body would move." He told her as effortlessly as though they were discussing the matter over drinks.

"Why?!" she demanded in sheer disbelief, causing the man to shrug loosely.

"No special reason, I got bored just standing here in the elevator."

"We haven't even been in here for half a minute!"

"What can I say, I get bored really easily!" The man told her like that was all the explanation she needed.

"You're nuts." She plainly told him; having never been the type to keep her thoughts and opinions to herself. This made him smile.

"Most brilliant men often are; I take pride in my own madness." He answered in what seemed to be the first serious tone he'd used with her since she resolved to bring him back up here. Serena was saved from any further responses by the elevator door dinging and with that she dragged him out with her to the top floor; where the unopened steel door leading to the gym were locked up tight with all types of security both electrically charged and mystical alike.

Serena rapped the door with her knuckles three times. "Open up Bonnie, it's me Serena, and you've got a challenger waiting for you." She shouted at the top of her lungs, knowing that the current gym leader would hear her.

"Um yeah, about that..." The man behind her started, but he was interrupted by Bonnie's voice echoing politely through the intercoms.

"If it pleases you, you may bring him in, but if you might be so kind as to tell me the password?" She requested in her usual exceedingly polite manner, but Serena was having none of that.

"Don't make me break my foot off in your ass Bonnie." Serena growled warningly.

"Hehe, good enough." The lemon haired girl laughed nervously; before the metallic doors slid smoothly open to admit them and Serena stepped aside in an uncharacteristic display of politeness to let the man go in ahead of her. He simply stood there like a lump on a log though, looking very uncomfortable all of a sudden as Serena rolled her eyes and grabbed his wrist again.

"Oh honestly, come on." she brashly shouted before dragging him once again and smirking at his yelps of protest. Bonnie was waiting at the back of the huge gymnasium, a series of spell books and other trinkets scattered all over the floor or floating up in the air, in front of her face while she looked them over.

"I'll be with you two in just a sec." Bonnie promised them, placing a bookmark in one of her personal favorites; _Standard Book of Spells, Enchantments, and Everyday Household Magic_.

"Wait here." Serena commanded the man quickly, not even giving him time to respond as she marched over to where the 19-year-old sorceress was just placing her book down with the page she was on carefully marked so she wouldn't lose her place in it.

She was dressed in a fanciful white dress that flowed with elegance and made her look even more like the perfect princess she tended to behave as. Her propriety and manners was akin to the noblest of Grand Duchesses in the Battle Chateau; her beauty was virtually unopposed due to her magic enhancing all of her already considerable assets and features and giving her an almost supernatural appeal. Truly that little 9-year-old girl Serena had first met had become a vision of loveliness; she had definitely grown up and age had been most kind to her.

"Serena, how perfectly lovely to see you again." Bonnie warmly greeted her.

"Yeah, yeah, you've got a challenger you know. And he somehow managed to trip the trapdoor ward you deactivated way back when." Serena brushed off her friend's all too perfect greeting but inside she was smiling at how like the Bonnie she knew and loved this woman still was at the core. Maybe having magical powers allowed one to retain that love of fairy tales for much longer, or maybe it was just Bonnie's unique personality; either way it had grown to become endearing to Serena.

"Ah yes, don't worry about that, he asked me to reactivate it just one time for him. Isn't that right good sir, please do feel free to come over here at any time you know." Bonnie called him over; causing Serena to stare at both of them in shock, her mouth agape as the man chuckled up a storm.

"My, my, my, seems we've found ourselves in an awkward situation. My apologies for having Serena bring me here with such fierce ire but I was all but dragged along for the ride before I could fully explain the situation to miss loudmouth over there." The man snickered, grinning gregariously at Serena as she blushed beet red.

"It's quite alright sir, Serena has a bit of a tendency to jump the gun before she has all the facts but her heart's in the right place." Bonnie giggled understandingly as Serena continued to gaze between the two of them in utter perplexity.

"Can someone please tell me what the fuck is going on here?!" She demanded in a shrill voice, ready to explode as Bonnie looked thoroughly scandalized.

"Language Serena, my goodness; I see traveling alone has done very little to temper that tongue of yours. As for your reasonable question, I think it best if we let our dear guest here explain." Bonnie replied in a very firm tone of voice that indicated Serena had stepped out of bounds with her cursing. For all of her dominant personality, Serena knew when Bonnie was being serious about something and knew better than to cross her when she was; Arceus knows what the sorceress could turn her into if she behaved too inappropriately. The man whom Serena had gone to the trouble of helping along, and who might not have even wanted her help in the first place; began his story.

"Well, I was supposed to meet a friend of mine awhile back, and I'd imagine she's looking for me right about now. Anyways, I lost track of time when I came down this way and decided to see if the current gym leader was up to giving me a rematch. I already have this gym's badge, but I wasn't going to pass up an opportunity to see how this lovely young lady here battled in comparison to her predecessor. When I got here I decided to ask if she was busy. She said she wasn't doing anything overly important, but I didn't want to disturb her when she was getting a good read in. So I asked her to do one thing for me; to not only help me make my exit faster than taking the elevator but also speed up the process of reunification between myself and my understandably concerned friend." The man explained to them in a lengthy anecdote spoken at a mile a minute. Bonnie looked like she understood him perfectly and without any trouble, but Serena barely managed to process that lot of info dump before she realized she made a bit of a boo-boo.

"And the reason you didn't tell me any of this sooner is because why?!" She glared at him, knowing it was her mistake but not wanting to admit it. Usually most men wouldn't argue with her when she gave them her patented Seviper Glare as Bonnie named it, even if they knew they were in the right they'd usually be too intimidated to call her on it. But this man was not like those other man; he stared right back at her completely unperturbed with that maddening grin of his still in place.

"I did try, multiple times actually, but it didn't take. You're quite the force to be reckoned with miss Yvonne. I have heard of your championship titles from across the United Regions of course. I never imagined you would be quite so adorable in person though. Who knew that your ire only added to your allure." The man winked at her while he said this, and both Serena and Bonnie looked surprised.

Bonnie actually looked impressed that somebody was brave enough to throw a little flirtation Serena's way, but in truth she was happy for her. Serena needed someone to look out for her as much as Bonnie did. Loathe though she was to admit this, Bonnie still wasn't any closer to finding the solution to her brother's untimely demise. Even Squishy's wealth of ancient, nigh omniscient knowledge when she communed with him on the subject only turned up suggestions like finding a Jirachi who could grant her a wish to bring him back, or asking Hoopa the mighty genie to summon him from a time before his death.

Temporal paradox loops aside, Bonnie was pretty much fresh out of options short of taking the matter to the Creation Trio and Arceus themselves. It was highly unlikely they would even agree to hear her out; justifying their inaction by saying it would disturb some balance of nature for them to resurrect her brother. Even Serena's pull as the Chosen One would be unlikely to sway them, but she knew she would have to try. If for no other reason than to get closure with her brother; to say a proper goodbye to him since she never got the chance to before.

Serena meanwhile, could not believe the nerve of his man; openly flirting with her in front of Bonnie, though a part of her also commended his bravery. Ash hadn't been courageous enough to act on his obvious crush and her; though Clement was a completely different story altogether. Until this man came along... the once brilliant magician had been the only male with enough balls to challenge her, and wasn't intimidated by her in the slightest. She liked a dominating but kind male who knew what he wanted and wasn't afraid to take her.

"I'm sorry good sir, but we never did catch your name did we?" Bonnie suddenly piped up, jarring Serena out of her churning thoughts and feelings as the man grinned at the pair of them like a Mega Gengar.

"Ah yes, how remiss of me not to introduce myself. Well allow me to amend that oversight by doing so now. The name's Thomas, Thomas Currie; though I'd prefer if you guys call me Tom, Thomas is much too formal honestly." The man called Tom introduced himself with a theatrical bowing of his head that made Bonnie giggle and Serena roll her eyes.

"You entertain me Tom, you're funny and flirty. Perhaps I could indulge in a Pokemon battle with you, that is if your own schedule isn't too busy." Bonnie offered him kindly as Serena mimed a gag in response to her ridiculous levels of politeness.

"Alas, as much I would love to lady Bonnie; I'm afraid I have little more time to spare. My friend must be searching high and low for me by now." Tom charmingly replied while bowing and grabbing the rim of his top hat with his thumb and index finger and tipping it towards them slightly.

"Lady Bonnie, I rather like that." Bonnie giggled, very thoroughly taken by Tom's surprisingly sophisticated manner and propriety; even if he was a bit eccentric about it. She rather liked a man who didn't comply with the norms of modern society; no matter how much she may have scolded Serena for swearing or for her general impropriety it was mostly said in jest.

When one spent as much time as Bonnie staying in character as some perfectly behaved princess one almost tended to believe they were half the time; the other half they were busy doing things no medieval princess would even consider doing with a member of the opposite sex. For all of her playing around with the persona she had created, Bonnie was a 19-year-old hormonal girl at the height of her sex drive, and she had needs. For all of his eccentricities; this man was giving her the ultimate itch, and it would seem he would need to scratch it in order to get it out of her system.

To say she was mystified by the oddly dressed Thomas would be the understatement of the century. The fact that her magical powers revealed nothing about Tom to her discombobulated her to an immense degree. He was clearly a man who took great pride in confusing and disorienting the minds of others. His dress and the way he carried himself seemed to speak of someone who held great wisdom and power, and she very much wanted to discover that power for herself in the heat of battle, but she was disappointed when he kindly rejected her offer. Deciding to humor Bonnie just this once, and to help her gain a battle she clearly wanted to have with this person, Serena quickly took charge.

"Excuse me, but the princess here has extended her hand to you in a royal invitation to battle. You would be both uncouth and unwise to reject her kind offer no matter your reasoning." she had inexplicably slipped into a remarkably regal tone of voice... likely spawning from years of her telling people what to do. Perhaps she had been a princess in another life.

Tom chuckled merrily, much to their delight. "Oh, there I go again; forgetting myself and my manners. I will be most pleased to engage you your grace; right here, right now, and besides that I can feel my friend's presence approaching here very quickly anyways." Tom replied to them with another theatrical bow that had both girls laughing this time. He was an oddball, that was for damn sure, but his goofiness was somewhat endearing at least. As if on cue, another female voice broke out across the gym's battle stadium. Bonnie was royally mind-fucked to find what looked like her identical twin making her way towards Tom. Her choice of attire was clearly different but aside from that the differences between them few and far. Squishy's head emerged from inside her satchel, his eyes widening in shock at the girl who was his trainer's near spitting-image; though with a slightly darker complexion and lemony hair color.

"There you are Tom, I've been looking everywhere for you; so this is where you've been holed up." The Bonnie lookalike scolded him lightly with a teasing grin on her face, and a voice identical to Bonnie's own. She didn't look to be the slightest bit winded despite having sprinted at a pace and distance that would leave pro-caliber sprinters collapsing from asphyxiation. Bonnie wasn't sure she could have made that run all the way from the elevator to where Tom was standing right now, at least not at the speed at which her duplicate had done, and certainly not in one go.

"Ah yes, Eureka; I was hoping you'd come. I was just about to accept _Bonnie's_ challenge over here." He replied with significant emphasis on the lemon blond girl's name as the one called Eureka widened her eyes. Their eyes met, and Bonnie knew in those exact moments that this girl was her dimensional doppelganger from way back during the incident in Reflection Cave.

"Wow, we really do look alike don't we?" Eureka chuckled sheepishly with a smile as Thomas facepalmed.

"I don't think they're buying it Eureka, but thanks for trying anyway. We've met them before remember; back in Reflection Cave." Tom told her as Serena's eyes widened. It suddenly dawned on her why Bonnie's lookalike so eerily resembled her, it was because she literally _was_ her; or at least a different version of her from another Pokemon world.

"Ah man, I was hoping we'd be better at this whole undercover thing; but I guess blending in is a whole lot tougher than I thought," Eureka pouted semi playfully as Bonnie exchanged a glance with Serena.

"You remember that incident then I take it." She asked the honey blonde champion, who nodded slowly.

"How could I forget?" She whispered.

"Sorry for not coming forward with you guys right off the Crobat, but I had to be sure this was the same point in the Inverted Omega Omnisphere that we saw all the way back then before we revealed anything. And with Bonnie here- yes there are two Bonnie's right now- getting sick I decided to give her some time alone to fully adapt to this Omniverse's ecology; before casing every inch of this entire planet and verifying that it was the one we sought." Tom informed them, many of his words and terminologies completely flying over both Serena and Bonnie's heads as the pair of them stared at him in disbelief.

"Hey, I remember you now, you're _that_ Thomas! You're the guy who opened up that breach despite Clement said it would be impossible for Ash's doppelganger to return to his own dimension." Serena exclaimed, suddenly remembering everything from that day as Tom nodded with a smile.

"Under normal conditions it would be. Our worlds were entire Omega Omnispheres apart and thus infinitely removed from one another. And the quantum alignment between our two Totalities of Existence only occurs once every eternity, give or take a few eons. Breaking through to this world from our own would require breaking the Omni Dimensional Barrier itself. Such a logic-breaking superpower is one only someone like me possesses." Tom informed them as though breaking dimensional barriers was something he could do in his sleep, like it was no big deal.

Bonnie's counterpart shook her head in amused exasperation. "You seem to take far too much pleasure out of boggling people's minds." She playfully admonished him; a teasing, flirtatious undertone to her remark that lead Bonnie and Serena to believe that these two were romantically entangled with one another, at least to some degree.

"What can I say? I like it when people ask me the obvious question. Come on, somebody ask me it; I know you want to," Thomas snickered with an airy shrug as Serena rolled her eyes at this.

"Okay, I'll bite. What in the hell is the Inverted Omega Omnisphere and this Omni Dimensional Barrier you keep going on about?! You've mentioned these things before the last time we met and it was just as irritating then as it is now!" She demanded in an abrasive manner, and both Bonnie's snickered at this as Tom looked somewhat hurt before recovering and opting to take the lead.

"First things first, this is a long and complicated story on my end, and I'm feeling rather peckish. What's say I treat you three lovely ladies to some dinner at Hotel Le Wow and we can discuss the matter over drinks or something?" Tom invitingly offered them, though both Serena and Bonnie hesitated at this.

Bonnie's counterpart sensed this and chuckled. "Don't worry you guys, he detests alcohol with a bloody passion so he's not likely to get any one of us drunk or otherwise too impaired to stop him from ravaging us against our will. Besides that, I'll keep him thoroughly in check if he ever does try anything. I can personally guarantee you though that he's just doing this to be friendly." Bonnie number 2 as Bonnie and Serena both simultaneously agreed to dub her in their own minds, promised them as both girls seemed to get over their fear.

Besides that, though, they were going to the best and most expensive restaurant in town which meant that clearly this man had money coming out his ass. "Alright then, lead the way mister Dimension Distorter." Serena instructed them, and with that in mind they all followed Tom out of the gym and Bonnie made a last minute decision to eject them all out of her Prism Tower's trapdoor. Both versions of her and Tom whooped with joy as they slid down the chute; whereas Serena screamed at the top of her lungs in shock as they all fell out towards the asphalt below.

XXXXX

" _Ash, I'm so, so sorry; this is all my fault. I knew I was forgetting something extremely important about the cave mirrors legend and now… we're too late to do anything about it_. _" Clement apologized profusely time and again as the perplexed Pallet Town trainer gazed vacantly upon the unblinking, lifeless mirror. He was unable to wrap his head around the fact that he was stuck here for the rest of time. His family, his friends, especially Serena; they all had to be worried sick, but they probably didn't know yet. They didn't know that he wasn't coming back, and some part of them would still hope that he could return; maybe even until the day they died._

" _There's gotta be something we can do!" Ash stubbornly insisted, refusing to give up till the end. Clement and even 9-year-old Bonnie who had dabbled in certain magics and fields of knowledge; shook their heads with crushing penitence weighing down on them. Even Serena's hard ass doppelganger looked like she was fighting back tears; that she would shed for him and his situation were she not so thick-skinned._

 _"I'm sorry Ash, but the alignment that makes travel between our worlds possible has closed off completely. I'm sorry, but I just don't know when that alignment will reoccur. It could be a week, or not for ten thousand years. Regardless the universe has its own set of cycles, and no matter how advanced we think we are we can't change that_.' _Clement softly spoke, hating himself for being the one to break this bad news; knowing that there was nothing to be done._

_Ash's doppelganger was already crying nonstop on his behalf, but all Ash could do was stand there with Pikachu on his shoulder in stunned silence. 'Wait a minute... if anything can figure out a way to bridge the gap it's Thomas. Given enough time, maybe he can even find a way to reopen the link between the two worlds.' Ash suddenly thought, some absurd feeling of hope fanning inside of him. It was the biggest long shot ever, but if anyone could figure out how to get him back home it was that remarkable man who put Clement's genius to absolute shame._

_He stood away from the mirror, a smile etched on his that confused the hell out of the others. "Um Ash... you do understand what's going on don't you?" Serena's brasher, domineering double spoke somewhat condescendingly to him, like he was some idiot who needed reminding of the situation._

_"Alright Tom, time to put your money where your mouth is and show me just how smart you really are!" Ash shouted in a challenging tone; effectively egging the man on while ignoring Serena's comment altogether._

" _Um, Ash, whoever this Tom is I don't think he can hear you." Bonnie number 2 spoke plainly, wondering if he'd gone quite mad, but that only made Ash's grin widen._

_"I wouldn't be surprised if he could somehow Bonnie. In the short time I've known him that man has shown me he can accomplish absolutely anything, and he's always... one step ahead of everyone else." Ash chuckled, intriguing all of them at the mention of the guy's name._

_"I'm confused, if everything between our two worlds is parallel; then why don't we have our own version of this Thomas?" Serena queried in a naturally demanding tone; her voice somewhat softer than normal as Clement struck a thinking pose._

" _Hmm, I honestly couldn't say for sure." He pondered; not used to being in situations where he was at a loss to explain something and not really caring for it._

_"Maybe he's only in this Ash's world." Bonnie suggested meekly, but Clement considered her words while striking a thinking pose._

_Maybe, but whatever the case is Ash's counterpart here seems to think he can help. And if Ash has such strong faith in his ability to somehow bring him back home; then maybe we ought to trust his instincts for now. That said Ash, we should find someplace to camp for the night; even if Tom can find a way back here, it might not be for hours or even days." the aspiring sorcerer informed them diligently. He almost hoped this Tom found a way to prove him wrong; at least then the thought of Ash being stuck here because of him wouldn't weigh so heavily on his conscience._

" _But, I thought you said that it was impossible for anyone to force the alignment to reoccur, now we're going to pin our hopes on this stranger we have no knowledge of to get Ash home." Serena dubiously stated, and Clement nodded while Bonnie merely grinned and Serena folded her arms over her developing chest._

_"That's about the gist of it yes, and I know what I said Serena. As far as I know, it should be impossible by all known accounts, but I've never once claimed to know everything before, and I don't intend to start now. To be perfectly honest, if I'm actually wrong this one time it will be a very welcome thing." The astoundingly intelligent magician told the honey blonde girl, the girl he professed to have feelings for; even while she huffed and pouted in an attempt to look putout she still looked utterly adorable to him._

_Their crybaby Ash, who hadn't said anything before now… suddenly piped up. "I'm with Clement on this; he seems to know a lot more about this than any of us and if he trusts my twin's instincts then I do to." He sniffed with surprising amounts of faith and fortitude. Serena had been outvoted even before her crybaby Ash said his piece, but now she knew the battle was lost because everyone was unanimous except for her._

" _So we'll find a place to camp right outside the cave and not too far, alright Ash." Clement suggested like the leader he was, and loathe though Serena was to admit she had to be honest with herself at least about liking the dorky genius-boy take charge._

_"But what if Tom comes back through this mirror and we're not there to see him?" Ash asked in a worried tone. He thought it was a legitimate concern, but Clement shook his head._

_"No Ash... worlds like ours usually have more than one passageway to get in and out, but it is unlikely he'll be able to use the same exact dimensional gateway to bring himself here. I doubt we'd even have to worry about him not finding you anyways. If I'm correct, then if he makes a portal designed to hone in on your trans-dimensional energy; the portal itself should hone in on your frequency and allow him to find us in a flash." Clement explained to him with the same scientific genius that his Clement had back home; only different altogether._

" _I don't think I understood much of that, but I get the gist of what you're saying Clement; alright then, let's make camp outside." Ash said, embracing the idea of hanging with these people for a little while longer. He was pinning a lot of possibly false hopes on Thomas right now, but he didn't really have any other options. This world's Clement made it seem like breaching the dimensional gap between their worlds was an Arceus Tier feat at the least. If that was the case, then even Thomas had his work cut out for him._

_An hour or so later; they had the camp outside Reflection Cave fully set up and were all sitting around the fire talking. "So, what are things like in your world? You mentioned Team Rocket being a group of Pokemon thieves in your world, but in ours they're the heroes of justice. They also are a lot more competent at their jobs than your Team Rocket seems to be at theirs. So I was just wondering what else about our two worlds oppose or mirror each other?" Serena asked him with no sign of that condescending, dominating personality she had shown earlier. It seemed that despite her gruffer demeanor compared to his world's Serena, she still had a heart of gold deep inside of her. Clearly she was more sympathetic of his situation than she led him to believe. Maybe her addressing any differences between their two worlds was her way of keeping his mind focused on the positives and never letting him forget where he had been born and raised._

" _Well, I started my journey in Kanto... then moved on to the Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh, and Unova Leagues but we didn't win any of them so far. We placed higher and higher till Sinnoh. I'll be the first person to tell you Unova was one big step back for me. But I've come even further forward now and I am confident I will place higher in the Kalos League than in any League before... maybe even go all the way this time!" Ash explained to them with childish excitement as Pikachu mimed a fist pump in the air behind him with glee. Serena # 2 beamed at this; even if she was slightly confused._

" _But we've only just started out on our first journeys here in Kalos; why is this not a mirror image of his world Clement?" She quickly asked him for clarification as the man shrugged._

_"Don't really know, maybe our journeys are happening in reverse order of Ash's. Our crybaby Ash was born and raised here in Kalos and since things happen in Reverse order in both respects maybe our journeys are starting now here in Kalos and will end in Kanto whereas Ash began in Kanto and will win it all in Kalos._

_Our beginning is his end and vice versa, and he's already at his journey's end whereas we're only at our beginning." Clement suddenly went in depth with a theoretical explanation of why things weren't mirror-mirror in that case, and his explanation pretty well flew over everyone's heads. At least in their world Clement got a taste of his own medicine when Thomas started talking, but here Ash had to really struggle and pay attention to understand even half the points they made. He didn't think it was for them to sound smart at this point either. Ash honestly believed that for people like Thomas, this was just his normal speech pattern and it would take some getting used to._

_Serena however, seemed more interested in discussing Ash's placements in the League. "So with your impressive placements in the league and all that; how do you I think I might stack up in my world comparatively?" She couldn't help but wonder, almost making it a sort of friendly competition between them as Ash grinned. She was so like and yet unlike his Serena at the same time, it was confusing to his poor simplistic brain. Before Thomas came along Ash had lived by a very simple view of the world and by a simple set of beliefs, but the man's arrival had forced him to step it up in the thinking department. To be around someone so naturally thought-provoking and able to go in depth on almost every subject was enough to make Ash's head hurt. He sometimes wished he had been blessed with a more complicated thought pattern if only to slightly understand what goes through Thomas's brilliant mind._

" _I... really don't know Serena, perhaps with everything working in reverse or whatever order here you might place even higher than I did; heck you might even win all the leagues in all the regions." Ash encouragingly whispered, causing Serena to almost blush against her will._

_"Or I could simply place even lower." She pointed out, but Ash laughed that off._

_"Are you kidding me, no way Serena; you'll only place lower if you fail to keep going when the going gets tough. I got where I am because I always set the bar as high as it could go and aimed straight for the top, and while I may not have gone all the way I had the capacity to dream big._

_My friend Thomas actually has a saying for that. He says when it comes to fulfilling one's dreams; it's better to reach for the stars and settle on the mountaintop than to aim for the foothills and wind up in the pits. If you don't dream big Serena then you might as well go on home, but if you set the bar high enough and do your absolute best, then no matter what the results may end up being you'll not regret them." Ash said to all of them, hoping what little advice he could give them was useful but believing in his borrowed words from Thomas with all of his heart. That philosophy of his, while somewhat more complex than the ones Ash prided himself on; spoke volumes to Ash when he first heard it and he asked Thomas to help him apply it to everything he did to train alongside his Pokemon._

_Serena and the others were floored by his moving words, having rarely heard such wisdom before in any of their lives. "Wow, okay then, I admit I didn't strike you as the philosophical type Ash." Serena finally said, and Ash's duplicate from this world nodded in agreement while the other two humans and even both Pikachu looked on in silent awe._

_"I'm not, but when you hang around with someone like Thomas long enough; you pick things up." Ash admitted sheepishly as everyone nodded in understanding._

" _So, this Thomas person, he's really smart then I take it?" Ash's hyper-sensitive twin asked him._

_"Oh yeah, Thomas is the smartest person I've ever known by a long shot; even you've got nothing on him Clement." Ash told them all in turn as Clement smirked at the unintended challenge to his intellect; opting to see for himself whether this person was all he was cracked up to be if and when he came through the barrier between the two worlds._

" _We'll see sooner or later, let's all agree that if he cracks whatever code is necessary to break through the barrier between worlds then he's light-years ahead of me." Clement promised with a chuckle, and Ash and the others fist pumped the air as a unit like they'd been old chums forever._

_"I wish I could be as strong as you are Ash, but I..." Ash's counterpart started getting choked up at this point while Ash smiled warmly at him._

" _Hey, you could be if you really wanted to; I think the only difference between us is our personalities. I'm more naturally assertive and confident than you are and that's allowed me to overcome any self-doubt, but I bet if you applied yourself you'd go just as far as I do, maybe even further. Maybe some of my better qualities will rub off on you from this encounter, and I don't really know much about fate but if that's true then maybe I was meant to come here and help you guys out somehow, even if it's only for a little while. And if I was meant to come here, maybe I can stay with you until you no longer need me or something; perhaps if Thomas can't figure a way out and I complete whatever it is I am meant to do here; whether it's helping you guys or something, then maybe I'll be allowed to return to my world again." Ash said, giving what was perhaps the most in depth speech of his entire career; oh if only Thomas could hear him now._

" _That was a wonderfully elaborate speech Ash, but I think it's about time you came home to us." A voice with a very self-satisfied tone interrupted their campfire gathering; startling them all out of their respective reveries._

_"No fucking way; don't tell me he figured it out already!" Serena exclaimed in surprise as Clement's eyes widened._

_"Impossible!" he simply whispered, as none other than Thomas Currie strutted into their campsite with what appeared to be a multicolored portal silhouetting him against the edge of their campsite. He was wearing a shit-eating grin on his face, and MOchu was resting in his arms looking utterly spent and out cold. Ash had never been happier to see the guy the entire time he'd known him, and was content to let him gloat about this for years to come._

" _Clement, you said it was impossible… so then how?" Serena stammered uncontrollably._

_"I honestly believed it was." Clement spluttered incredulously, equally as mind-fucked while Bonnie merely sat there humming contently and seemed only half aware of what was going on._

_"The breaches between the two parallel dimensions should have been impossible for you to reopen. So how, how did you do it?!" Clement felt compelled to ask the strange man, who smirked knowingly at him._

" _Parallel dimensions huh; oh they're considerably further apart from one another than mere Multiversal mechanics can get a firm grasp on. They're entire Omega Omnispheres apart from each other, not that that means anything to you lot yet. Just bear with me for now, it'll all make sense in due time. Oh, and to give you clarity as to how Clement; I had my recently evolved Raichu here, nicknamed MOchu for reasons I need not get into right now, zoom about at ever accelerating rates until he broke the Invariant Speed Barrier. Breaking that speed barrier is much the same thing as breaking the Omni Dimensional Barrier; they achieve the same results and make travel between any two dimensions possible no matter how far apart or infinitely removed from one another they are._

_One could actually create a gateway into the Omega Omnispheres themselves and connect their dimension and time to infinite times, realities, dimensions, and the like. This poor guy here burned himself out doing it, but he and I absolutely refused to let Serena cry for even one moment longer." Thomas whispered in a tone of voice that they all still somehow managed to hear; his words lost on everyone including Clement, (much to his frustration and fascination) but his determination to get through to Ash and his devotion to Serena's counterpart was easily apparent. Serena, for her part, didn't really care how he did it once he put it like that; she couldn't help but find it incredibly sweet how devoted he was to her duplicate._

_Her doppelganger may have been in love with Ash, but it was clear to her now that this Thomas character was in love with her to. Just looking at the absolute lengths he had gone to in order to make Serena's shyer self happy and bring Ash back to her; it went way beyond mere friendship on his part, and this made her torn between routing for this brilliant man to get his girl and for Crybaby Ash's counterpart to get a clue._

' _Aw, he's so sweet and literally broke reality to find Ash and make their Serena happy, and while he may play it off as him doing something nice for a friend I can see it in his eyes that he loves her. Even if she and Ash can't see it themselves; her having eyes for only Ash is going to break this guy's heart and I can't help feeling torn on who to route for in this love triangle.' Serena thought to herself. Thomas indicated the portal behind him while looking back at Ash, a kind smile on his face despite being the one who loved Serena's counterpart. Ash took a step further forward towards the pulsing light up ahead, having grown close to these different versions of his traveling group and knowing he was going to miss them to some degree; but also knowing he would never get another chance to go home if he didn't take it here and now._

" _I'm ready Thomas, but how does this work exactly?" Ash wondered briefly as Thomas explained._

_"Just concentrate on the place you wish to be and your thoughts will guide you there. But be careful Ash, that portal connects to every reality, dimension, and parallel in every single version of Totality. So if you get lost in there you'll never be able to make it back out." Thomas warned him suddenly and in a severe tone of voice as Ash felt really nervous now. Sensing his hesitation, Thomas sighed sadly, his shoulders slumping the slightest bit._

_"It was the only way to break through to this Earth Ash. As I said, the two worlds were even further apart from each other than Clement realized. The quantum alignment that existed between them won't reoccur for an eternity, and no that is not a hyperbole Ash I mean that quite literally. If you ever want to have a chance of making it back home, you're going to have to take the ultimate leap of faith." he explained as Clement and the others listened in. The ingenious magician understood less than half of what the crazed but brilliant man said, but clearly he was faring better than the other three._

" _Alright, I'm not going to pretend I understand much of what you said; but let's do this." Ash said, bracing himself for a really long portal jump home._

_"I'm surprised you're not even questioning how I know all this." Thomas said to him, not seeming all that genuinely surprised in Ash's opinion as the Pallet Town trainer shrugged._

_"At this point I've stopped being surprised by what you know; I've just added it to the growing list of long overdue chats we're going to have in the future." Ash admitted with a warm chuckle, which made Thomas laugh himself._

_"And you will have that conversation soon believe me Ash; you, Serena, Bonnie, and Clement will all know the truth in time, and you more than deserve a proper explanation to all this. But I need to be careful how much I reveal and at the same time what I'm going to reveal to you guys is even bigger than you can imagine, so I'm just slowly easing you all into it." Thomas explained, loud enough for Ash's doppelganger and the different versions of his friends to hear as he smiled in total understanding._

" _I get it, whatever you're going to tell us is too big to take in all at once right." he said as Thomas's smile broadened._

_"Yes, exactly, so then; off you pop, up, up, and away. Homeward Bound Ash Ketchum." the crazed but brilliant man instructed gently but firmly._

_"Thank you for everything, I'll be forever grateful for this Tom. Hey, what about you though, aren't you coming?" Ash asked him quickly._

_"I'll be right behind you, I've just got some things I wish to discuss with your counterpart and his friends over there and then I'm going to be right on your arse. Just remember what I said about concentrating on where you wish to be and you'll be fine." Thomas reiterated._

_Ash shrugged and concentrated on his friends and especially on his slightly darker complexioned Serena; his home, his Pokemon, and everything else. He could feel Pikachu on his shoulder and all his other Pokemon doing much the same, which he figured would strengthen the connection to his world all the more. And with home and his Kalos Region and Reflection Cave in mind; Ash vanished in the portal with a small resounding pop, leaving Thomas and a sleeping MOchu in his arms to deal with the group of interdimensional doubles who resembled all of his closest friends and family members._

_He made his way to their campsite and indicated the log upon which Ash had sat only moments before. "If I may, there are things I'd imagine you wish to ask me about, and even if there's not there are some things I need to tell you myself." Thomas asked them politely, and Serena nodded before anyone else, his exceeding politeness clashing rather nicely with her own overbearing personality. As he slowly sat down the blonde haired aspiring champion trainer got her first good look at him, and her breath hitched and caught in her throat._

_His hair was disheveled and the color of chestnuts, evidently he didn't brush or comb his hair much if at all, yet it had a nice, untamed look to it that Serena still somehow found to be decent. His eyes were almost amber; a yellowish-brown that teetered on the edge of being gold, and there was an otherworldly intensity to them that seemed so much more than human. His skin was tanned a dark brown, likely from constant sunlight, and his face was slightly round. His choice of attire consisted of a loose fitting plain grey tee-shirt with a rainbow colored sideways eight symbol emblazoned boldly on the chest; with black shorts and what was undoubtedly a mega bracelet on his left arm. Serena couldn't really see the kind of body he was sporting aside from his exposed upper arms, which were a set of fine lean muscles; and his arms and legs that she could see were covered with lots of hair. All and all he looked amazing, and aside from the look in his eyes he looked completely human; a good looking, athletic, and unnervingly bright human but still a human._

" _So… you've just done something I've always believed was impossible; that's a really big pill to swallow." Clement finally said as the man named Thomas smiled; clearly sympathetic of Clement's inability to wrap his head around what had just occurred._

_"Yes, I'd imagine it would be; I take it you guys have questions then." he said in a welcoming gesture, as though inviting them to give him the 411._

" _Well I don't, I don't care how you did what you did kind sir; all I care is that you helped your world's dear Ash go home." Bonnie said with a shake of her head and an adoring smile on her face. This made Thomas laugh pleasantly in fond remembrance._

_"You remind me of your counterpart Bonnie; she was the first to trust me and welcome me into you guy's group. And even though they all know I am keeping things from them Bonnie was the first person to say she didn't care if I was, I think of her as a little sister and since I've never had one of my own that's a nice feeling; well I've not had one in this lifetime. I'm honestly not sure about any previous lives." Thomas continued laughing while he said this._

" _So you believe in reincarnation?" Clement asked for clarification, and Thomas nodded in affirmation._

_"Almost every culture in every Omega Omnisphere has some concept of an afterlife Clement. They're all true, all of them." Thomas informed him with such raw certainty of what he was saying that Serena couldn't bring herself to doubt him._

_"So what else can you and your Pokemon do, I mean besides breaking the dimensional barrier?" Serena suddenly asked, her crybaby Ash seeming to ponder a question of his own but waiting politely while Thomas answered Serena's._

_"Anything." He answered in a severe tone, and all of them fell intensely silent as Serena wondered if she should ask him to define anything, but quickly thought better of it, and decided she didn't even want to know. That was probably the most honest answer he'd given anyone about his and his Pokemon's capabilities, and before Serena could ask him why he was telling them all this crybaby Ash beat her to it._

_"So, why is it you're telling us so much about this when you haven't even done the same for your people and your world?" He piped up as everyone awaited Thomas's answer. Even Bonnie's interest was piqued at this point._

" _To put you all on your guard; my presence here might attract attention to your world of the most dangerous sort. Normally, this wouldn't be an issue, but since I'm still figuring out everything that comes with being… what I am and what I can do; well, I just don't trust my ability to safeguard both worlds yet so I leave that up to you. I'm probably worried for nothing, but if you guys ever truly end up needing me in the future at some point. I just wanted you to know that I will be there. No matter what it takes, I'll find a way back to this world; because honestly, in my not so humble opinion… all worlds and all versions of Totality are worth fighting for and worth protecting with my life as much as the next one." Thomas confided in them as they hung on his every word. Serena was marginally impressed by his dedication._

" _So you'll help us and our world whenever it's in danger? Thank you for your kindness good sir; I bid you good fortune in the years to come." Bonnie cooed admiringly. Thomas blushed at this, before he shook his head sadly._

_"I'm sorry but no Bonnie; I'm not supposed to interfere in the affairs of other peoples and planets except when there is an overwhelming need for me to do so. Technically I'm not supposed to at all ever; for any reason but I've never been keen on following that particular fundamental law. I am truly sorry you guys, but if you're capable of dealing with things and events on your own then the help I give can only be minimal at best most times._

_I could technically try and take charge of every problem that comes you guy's way but if your world relies on me too much it'll become unable to support itself without me and my protection. And since I tend to be busy dealing with a lot of crises across many different worlds that is not a good thing. I hope you can understand that you guys." Thomas explained this to them like he was admitting to committing an ultimate atrocity; like every life he didn't save was a loss he mourned with all his soul. Serena couldn't believe that another person's capacity to care could be so high, and she found herself sympathetic of his situation and wondered how emotionally exhausted he must be all the time.  
_

" _We understand, and while we would welcome any help you can give us against any threat we can't deal with on our own; our world has gotten along fine with divine intervention for a long time. So, go back to your world and your people already. I daresay you won't be needed here anytime soon." Serena commanded. Thomas couldn't help but grin at her; she could be a hard ass and uncompromising, but she wasn't a monster. She even had a nice side to her underneath that gruff exterior.  
_

_He got up and was starting to head to the portal when Bonnie and Serena both suddenly piped up. "What is it you two?" He quickly asked them, one step away from disappearing in the portal as Serena and Bonnie both seemed flustered and flushed in the face._

_"Well, um…. I just wanted to say; good luck to you on your adventures, and good luck with your version of Serena. I can see it in your eyes that care for my counterpart." Serena said, wishing him well as his eyes widened in slight shock before he recovered and smiled back at her.  
_

_"That obvious huh?" He asked her with a grin._

_Bonnie giggled and added her two cents worth. "You wear your heart on your sleeve and are really easy to read regarding your feelings. I'm actually glad you're not deceitful to be honest." She said to him with a smile.  
_

_"Something tells me our interactions here will leave a lasting impression on both our worlds and their respective timelines." Clement stated with a smile, and Thomas chuckled; an all-knowing look on his face._

" _The Emotional Spectrum of Infinite Totalities connects us all you guys. Every time we meet someone, even if only for a moment; our respective ESIT energies intermingle and leave a part of ourselves behind even after we part ways. It's the principle of infinite consequence at work in all of our lives, and the impressions we leave on each other carry over into every other aspect of our lives; compounding in ways we can't even begin to imagine and bonding us all on a level beyond the physical realm. I've seen bonds survive temporal erasure, magical interference and manipulation, burn through love potions, save worlds, universes, and even larger realities still. I have seen them transcend lifetimes, and even the endless rebirth of Totality itself. So the bonds we forged here today, however fleeting they may be; will connect us across even the barrier between Omega Omnispheres, breaking through the endless divide between them to do so." Thomas spoke in an echoic voice that sounded like countless people speaking as one._

_With those parting words committed to all their respective memories, Thomas gave one last sad smile before locking eyes quickly with Clement; who only saw the sadness in his eyes increase as he did so. With one last long, meaningful look at all of them, Thomas and MOchu disappeared into the portal, and it snapped closed with a wisp of smoke as the walls between realities closed for what might have been for the last time ever._

XXXXX

Having just gotten their seats at Restaurant Le Wow, Thomas and his world's Bonnie sat in one booth while Mirror Serena and Bonnie sat together in the booth across from them. With the waiter currently taking somebody else's orders; this gave them room to talk as Bonnie and Serena both remembered their last encounter with the strange man and had vivid flashbacks of that day.

"So I take it you guys remember me then? What's it been, 9, 10 years on your earth?" Thomas asked them for confirmation. For some bizarre reason he stuck his index finger into the air, prompting a confused look from Mirror Serena and Bonnie alike. It was as though he was determining which way the wind blew, and he stuck it in his mouth just before guessing the number of years. Serena didn't know what to make of him, and Bonnie's mouth fell open; making her resemble a fish out of water.

"Did you just... guess the number of years it's been by tasting the air?" She questioned, looking at him like he had lost his mind.

"10 years then, it's been exactly ten years since the day your world's Kalos Crisis has ended." Thomas answered his own question, while not answering Bonnie's at the same time.

"Ten years down to the day even?" Bonnie's counterpart questioned her mad partner.

"Yes indeed Eureka, you don't mind if I continue calling you that do you; it'll make it so much easier for the Fanfiction story readers to distinguish the two of you if I refer to classic Bonnie as Eureka and Mirror Bonnie as simply Bonnie." Thomas requested of his world's Bonnie as she nodded understandingly.

She giggled at her counterpart and Serena's expressions, and both of them exchanged a glance with each other while thinking the same thing. ' _There's something seriously whacked about this guy!_ '

At least Bonnie number 2 or 1, or Eureka as she was now apparently rechristened for whatever reason… was somewhat normal to a certain degree, but Thomas was in another category altogether. He was something so foreign and alien that he just didn't come off as anything remotely human. "So, you knew about the Kalos Crisis in our world?" Bonnie finally decided to put her questioning of Thomas's madness behind her as she and Serena got back to what they were originally discussing.

"Yes, it's sort of a constant in Pokemon Universes across the Double-O. I'm surprised to learn that applies to an Inverted version of the Double-O though." Thomas informed her.

"So… you knew Clement, my Clement, was going to die saving the world?" Bonnie added quietly, not wanting to make the man feel guilty about it but unable to believe he could've known about something like that when he had the power to prevent it altogether. The look in Thomas's eyes as she asked him this very nearly made up for the heartache she had been feeling for the past 10 years. They expressed pure, unadulterated pain and condolences.

"First off, and understand this Bonnie because it's very important; when I told you I can do anything... I wasn't exaggerating. There's nothing I can't do, absolutely nothing... but I'm not supposed to. Ripples, tidal waves of Omni-Omniversal backlash, fundamental laws; there are many reasons why I can't just snap my fingers and fix everything for everyone purely on a whim. Unrestricted resurrection abilities are not beyond my power... but the source of that power is very, very strict about equivalent exchange. For every life saved a life must be taken, and for every life taken or given... a life can be saved. But unlimited uses of one or the other without the cost exchange, can upset the Omni-Omniversal balance of life and death on either side of the spectrum. Simply resurrecting the dead without sacrificing another life in exchange... can lead to tears in the fabric of reality, and the forced hand of the Omega Omnisphere as it finds a balance somehow. I would be condemning somebody else to die just so Clement can live." Thomas explained, his expression downcast and his gorgeous, multicolored eyes swimming with intense emotions of purest compassion. Bonnie felt her heart squeeze, and though she understood the price of power she wasn't about to let him off the hook so easily.

To her surprise, he answered her unasked question before she could even voice it aloud. "Clement's death was horrible and traumatic; there's no use in denying that. But all things have their time, and you guys need to ask yourselves how many more people could've died, if your world's Clement had lived? His sacrifice saved billions of lives, and the essence of heroism is to die so that others can live.

His heroism will have immortalized him, even in death... and he didn't die in vain. He died protecting the ones he loved, and can you honestly tell me you both wouldn't do the same if you were in his shoes? I don't think you could, but honestly... these things happen for a reason, and I can't bring him back because it would render his sacrifice meaningless. So, as hard as it is; you guys are going to have to let him go." Thomas whispered sadly. Bonnie narrowed her eyes at him, still not fully accepting his explanation.

"It's easy for you to say that when it isn't somebody you yourself are close to. But, what would you do if the Serena from your world had died? Are you honestly telling me you wouldn't go to hell and back to see her again?!" She demanded harshly, but she, Serena, and her doppelganger all froze when his expression hardened and the temperature around them dropped to soul-chilling levels of cold. When he replied to her, his voice held an acidic edge to it that painted the image in her mind of an infinitely massive hyper-giant about to go supernova.

"Not resurrecting my world's Serena was the hardest decision I ever made, but my answer is no Bonnie; I would never hold anyone to standards I myself don't live by!" He hissed at her; his tone unnervingly calm with a cold, calculated rage. Bonnie's eyes widened and Serena's blood froze in abject horror... unable to believe that he had not only lost someone as well but that it was her doppelganger and the woman he very clearly loved when last they met.

"I'm sorry..." Was all either of them could say... what the hell else was one supposed to say to that? What was infinitely worse was he knew he had the power to bring his Serena back, but because of these rules and cosmic balances he couldn't just bring her back on a whim. He was right to, them bringing Clement back would cheapen the victory they fought so hard for against Team Flare. Eureka's eyes watered as she placed her hand over top of Thomas's own; her expression one of raw emotion. His own expression softened at her gentle, loving touch; much to Serena and Bonnie's relief, hoping they never saw a look like that on anyone's face ever again.

Bonnie broke down into a set of silent sobs at this point; her body wracking with them uncontrollably as Serena held her in her arms and slowly soothed her back to a state of slight calm. The waiters were being unusually slow as the honey blonde trainer looked around her and noticed that nobody else in the restaurant was moving at all; the people on staff were literally paused mid-stride while heading towards their table, suspended perpetually in space. Glancing at Thomas quickly, he managed a small smile that didn't reach anywhere near his eyes. "I figured it would give us all more room, and some privacy to talk if I sped up our inertial reference frames to infinity. Time will resume its normal pace when we are ready to eat." Thomas explained to her as Eureka gave a watery chuckle.

"So that's why the waiter was taking so bloody long; I didn't realize you had even done anything," She responded. Thomas felt eternally grateful for her presence here; before he cleared his throat and turned his attention back to Mirror Serena and Bonnie.

"Apology accepted Bonnie... honestly, it's not like I wouldn't bring people like Clement or my Serena back if I wasn't acutely aware of how those actions affected the balance of life and death. Sometimes I think a Zenith Omnidony knows too much; is too aware of everything and how everything works. But understand this, the use of my resurrection abilities would force me to start choosing who lives and who dies, and that would make me a monster worse than Team Flare ever was." He rationalized as Bonnie nodded slowly.

"I... understand. I don't like it, and I never will... but I understand." She sniffed, rubbing her finger across her nose and wiping her eyes. Even the tough-as-nails Mirror Serena was holding herself back from shedding yet more tears.

"I'm glad you understand Bonnie, and trust me… you don't have to like it. I know I sure as hell don't. That said, there might be… something I can do for you. It's not going to be a full resurrection, but I can summon his spirit back to this plane of reality for a short time and give you a chance to say your goodbyes… and find some closure." Thomas offered her with absolute sincerity; wishing he could do a whole lot more for her than that, but even wishing upon his own ZOF enhanced Transcendent Genie Form wasn't going to be enough in this situation.

Bonnie nodded with a tearful smile; quickly regaining much of her happiness upon realizing it was indeed possible for this man to help her find closure. "That's something at least. The magic that I wield can permit me to summon spirits, but I can't control which spirits I summon and some of them could be bad. It's also considered to be necromancy and dabbling in the dark arts and is expressly forbidden; sorcerers who do so run the risk of becoming corrupt and tainted themselves." She explained to him.

"That sounds like a universally preset limitation or magical rule to me, and being a wielder of the power of Meta Magic; I can transcend any preexisting laws, limitations, or the like concerning magic on any scale. Whether those limitations are universal, Multiversal, Omega Omnisphere level pervasive, or even Omni-Omniversal are usually no consequence." Thomas responded as Bonnie brightened considerably, her sadness giving way to fascination at how his powers worked.

"That's really cool... I'm guessing that doesn't apply to whatever force prevents you from resurrecting the dead." She astutely said, and he nodded in affirmation as she sighed. He was willing to let her find closure with Clement's spirit, and she would just have to take what she could get from him at this point. Given the way she accused him of hypocrisy regarding his powers earlier; she was even more grateful that he was still willing to do as much for her as he could.

"No it doesn't, because it has nothing to do with magic. That said... it doesn't surprise me that the magic of your world is limited in such ways. The God Magic is what Zenith Omnidonae like myself create; it's almighty magic in some of it's most omnipotent forms and varieties, and though it's an Omni-Omniversal constant it is also exceedingly rare. Your world and even your portion of your Ultra-Verse is equally unlikely to contain trace amounts of it as Eureka's version of her world or her Ultra-Verse. Regardless of the Totality of Existence however, people like me can access and even create an endless supply of the God Magic anywhere and at any point in time and space we please." He explained to them, and Mirror Serena's eyes widened in astonishment.

"Wait... you mean to tell me that there's two of everything?!" She gaped at him, and he chuckled.

"Oh considerably more than two, but essentially yes. Picture this, the Omega Omnisphere is… everything, the single largest scale of reality conceptualized or imagined by any mind. Infinite and pervasive on the ultimate level, and yet not. Through the power of the Zenith Omnidonae Force, or ZOF for short; Zenith Omnidonae such as myself can create endless hierarchies of infinity and omnipotence, omniscience, etc that all Godlike beings abide by, whether knowingly or not. This allows us to create multiple or even countless versions of the Omega Omnisphere; this ultra-cluster of Totalities is called the Omni-Omega-Omnisphere... which offers endless alternatives to what we have in both our respective Realities." He explained to them with enthusiasm lacing his every word.

"So, just to clarify... how many versions of this Omega Omnisphere are there?" Serena questioned him.

"Infinite." He responded quickly; causing both of them to gawk at him as Eureka chuckled and shook her head slightly.

"Man, you really know how to mind fuck people don't you?" She grinned.

"What can I say? I have a knack for it!" Thomas chortled, while both Serena and Bonnie exchanged a glance and he continued his explanation. "The space between the alternate Omega Omnispheres is called the Realm of Absurdities, and it is basically a vast ocean of ZOF-Energy and a form of nothingness beyond all other concepts of nothingness. This realm is also the unrestricted access point to every version of Totality in the past, present, and future of the Omni-Omega-Omnisphere simultaneously, and only Zenith Omnidonae can travel and exist out there. Even ZOF-enhanced super-humans run the potential risk of losing their minds out there; because if their minds aren't wired the same way a full-fledged Zenith Omnidony's is then their reference frames will be too limited to make sense of the dead space around them." He concluded his explanation with a smile; all while never running short on breath. Hell, there were moments where it seemed he was only breathing out of habit or for appearance's sake.

"So, you're a guy with the power to travel to different versions of everything… that's sweet as hell! So, what's the differences between ours and yours?" Bonnie decided to ask why they were here and get to the root of the discussion.

Thomas looked over to Eureka. "You want to do the honors this time?" He asked her, and Eureka had the good grace to look right and truly shocked.

"Are you… mister 'my ego is the size of a planet,' asking me to steal your thunder and answer Bonnie's question? But you were doing such a good job." She drawled with teasing notes of mock-sarcasm leaking in her voice. Thomas stuck his tongue out at her like a giant four-year-old, and Serena and Bonnie broke out into laughter. If he was behaving like a child to that degree, then how bad could he really be?

"Just do it already you big goofball." He instructed her with that grin of his that set Eureka's heart ablaze with reverence and love. Even Serena had to admit, that while the wardrobe change was much stranger than before, his physical appeal had gone through the roof as compared to their last encounter.

His hair was much darker now, blacker than black like polished obsidian, and the skin she could see on his face and neck was tanned a tawny gold. He honestly could have been a supermodel if he wanted. He was the ultimate epitome of complete physical perfection; his musculature and every part of his body was perfectly symmetrical, his hairline was perfect, his skin tone flawless and free of any blemishes… it was almost like he was engineered. Most alluring of all that however, and ironically the least human trait about him, was his eyes. They were a blend of every color under the sun, giving off a boundless brilliance and magnetically drawing her into them like a pair of irresistible forces.

She was drawn out of those hypnotic, alluring eyes that locked onto her when Eureka cleared her throat and all the attention was shifted over to her.

"Okay so um… Thomas says your version of everything is like… an inverted version of our everything and many others as well. He says that can sometimes happen; with the infinite alternative Totalities out there you often run into some that are infinitely removed from the mainstream or the norm in various ways.

There will be some constants and parallels between your version of events and our own; certain common traits that connect all versions, but yours is called an Inverse Totality, because it's flip sided and turned upside down compared to the Omega Omnisphere nearest it. Which just so happens to be ours. Ours is the version that exists immediately before yours is created; so relative to us you guys are the next model, Omega Omnisphere 2.0 or whatever you wanna call it." Eureka hoped she explained this with even a fraction of the finesse that Thomas did, and she was pleasantly surprised when both Bonnie and Serena nodded in understanding.

"But wait, if this is an issue of relativity; then how do you know it's not you guys who are the oddball versions? For all we know you guys could be the ones that are Inverted from the mainstream or the norm." Serena suddenly piped up as this notion of relativity occurred to her.

Thomas clapped jovially. "Ah, excellent point really. To answer your astute question Serena; it's a matter of your version simply being severely outnumbered. The vast majority of Totalities have much the same parallel histories, origins, and almighty heroes and champions; with no major events or things being Topsy-turvied.

Now, there might be an infinite number of tiny details that are the slightest bit tweaked or edited or even completely different in certain Totalities and their respective continuities, but not completely inverted and turned upside down in comparison to the version of everything nearest it. In a majority; the minorities of people, places, and things that are the most glaringly different, odd, different, or even unaccepted in the eyes of the rest of the population… are the ones singled out the most or in the most direct way. Think like omniverse theorists, hardened criminals in jail, and other such minorities as compared to the rest of the human populace. Okay, bad example for the second one, but my point still stands." Thomas explained to them with another of his more maddening grins in place as Eureka chuckled.

"So, basically… Thomas has the power to access any and all versions of the Omega Omnisphere; I'm just along for the ride as he explores this one." Eureka said, summing it all up in a nutshell as Bonnie and Serena both nodded in acceptance.

"I have to admit, you guys are being impressively open-minded about this." Thomas told them, as both girls exchanged a smile.

"To be honest, we've seen some pretty crazy things, plus with the whole alternate dimensions thing I'm guessing you guys are just an almighty alternative to the Pokemon Trainers in our world." Serena smirked.

"Well that's it right?! Each Omega Omnisphere offers every possible and impossible alternative to every being in all of seemingly fictional and nonfictional history; having multiple Omega Omnispheres are for the benefit of Zenith Omnidonae like myself who are singularities in our indigenous Totalities... so even the loneliest Gods of all are never truly alone." Thomas explained to them with a dazzling smile.

"So… you can do anything but because of certain cosmic laws you're not supposed to just abuse that power. I'm guessing if you were a monster with no conscience you wouldn't even care about adhering to those rules, huh?" Bonnie asked him, and Thomas shook his head in affirmation as Mirror Bonnie and Serena exchanged a smile. Serena decided to tease him a little.

"I bet there's some twisted, depraved part of you that gets off on the idea of having three admittedly gorgeous women eating in a restaurant with you. Maybe if you were less of a boy scout you'd take us all in a foursome for the ages." She grinned at him suggestively as Thomas blushed and Mirror Bonnie looked scandalized by the implications. Eureka however... merely smirked at this.

"You may be interested to know that everything about Thomas is proportionate to his powers; including his libido and sexual pleasure. So while he believes in free will; he is most assuredly not a prude by any stretch of the imagination." She laughed as Thomas recovered from his shock while Mirror Serena whistled in astonishment.

"Damn... how the hell are you still sane and able to reign in your desires?! If sex is so mind-bogglingly pleasurable for your people then how..." She broke off as the shock settled in, unable to even picture being so insatiably horny all the time. Thomas grinned at this.

"My people are legendary for the amount of control we have; given our abilities we kind of have to be. But yeah, even despite our ability to cope being equally as elevated... I still need to scratch that wicked itch of mine as much as I can, and by any means necessary. Hell, I don't even require help with that most days... I can also customize my existence in order to deaden my sexual pleasure, but frankly that isn't nearly as much fun." He explained to them as Mirror Bonnie blushed and Serena shook her head in amusement. This conversation would've no doubt been some kind of a head turner were it not for the temporally suspended people in the restaurant.

"A fact we should probably be grateful for; considering how easy it would be for you to go on a fucking spree and not give anyone you plow a choice in the matter." Mirror Serena brazenly pointed out, before quirking an eyebrow at him while smirking. "You wouldn't just go into some crazy heat cycle or something, would you?" She grinned, and Mirror Bonnie's blush deepened at the mature content of this conversation and Eureka guffawed.

"You guys don't actually believe I would ever do anything like that, do you?" Thomas asked them all; pretty sure he already knew the answer but wanting to be 100 percent positive.

"No, you may be a total oddball, and so alien in many respects, but I trust you. After what you did for your world's Ash all those years ago, and what you've sacrificed for your Serena and are willing to do for us regarding Clement; how can we not?" Bonnie said slowly and with deliberate emphasis on every word, speaking for both herself and Serena.

The older girl agreed, smirking lightly as she did so. "You do look different than you did then though; a lot more attractive if you want the honest to goodness truth. Don't think of this as a term of affection because it isn't, but you're unbelievably gorgeous. I can tell just by looking at you that you're physically perfect." She admitted unabashedly; evidently lacking classic Serena's initial shyness and nervousness when she had been around him.

"Oh posh, this old thing; I've been rocking it for eternities." Thomas winked at her playfully.

"So you change your appearance on a whim then?" Bonnie wondered idly; as Eureka and Thomas both exchanged a more serious glance.

"Actually, he um… pops right back up with a new face and altered personality… every time he… dies. You see, Thomas doesn't die in the conventional sense like mortal beings do; he more or less reincarnates." Eureka explained to them. Serena and Bonnie blanched at the mention of death, but Thomas simply chuckled.

"A regeneration cycle that transcends the endless rebirth of Totality itself; this is the same man you guys are seeing before you as last time… same man, new face. Well, new everything really. Reincarnation is a well-accepted form of afterlife and post-death phenomena and thus the biggest loophole in the balance of life and death clause. It's a long shot, and unlikely to succeed if Clement is already at peace, but I may be able to reincarnate him as well. It won't be the same as having your brother back, and most mortals are reborn as babies so he wouldn't remember you right away, but you'd have your brother back in some form or fashion." Thomas explained, adding onto Eureka's explanation with that same slightly self-satisfactory grin in place; the implications of his words sinking in as both girls' eyes were the approximate size of the average dinner plate.

"So you've died… multiple times?!" Bonnie stammered disbelievingly; choosing not to mention the part about Clement reincarnating in an effort not to get her hopes up.

"Yeah, Zenith Omnidonae have this little trick you see; it's sort of a way of cheating death or at the very least delaying the inevitable. But it's a bit dodgy as a process... you never know what you're gonna end up with when you do it. Everything I am just dies, and some new man goes sauntering away in my place." He whispered with a sigh; seeing how hard this information was to both of them and trying to think of a way to comfort them a little. Thankfully, Eureka jumped in with her own explanation.

"Hey, I once was put in a situation where I had to go into this nutcase's head. He's able to retain traces of his past lives inside of his mindscape, and whilst inside it I encountered multiple past lives of his; each with varying personality traits and quirks. Let's just say that while his different personalities and selves never truly fade away even after he regenerates; having more than one Thomas Infinity at a time gets to be a bit too crazy even for me." Eureka launched into an anecdote about how Thomas Infinity had gotten all mopey and retreated inside of himself in a self-induced coma one time; forcing her hand by putting her inside his own mind in an effort to snap him out of his funk. As she had been planning all along; Mirror Serena and Bonnie both started giggling at the funny story, evidently feeling better about the whole process of regeneration.

"Ah, good times, I find that the longer you live and the more you experience; the more you have to reflect back upon. If you don't make any stupid mistakes when you're young; you don't have any amusing stories to tell when you're old?" Thomas spoke in a sage tone.

"How old are you exactly, and how long do you plan on keeping this time freeze spell intact?" Mirror Bonnie asked him.

"Over 2000 eternities, and as long as you guys want; we can order food whenever you're both ready." Thomas answered her concisely; being surprisingly to the point with his response though that wasn't as surprising as just how absurdly long he claimed to have lived.

Seeing their stunned expressions, Thomas elaborated somewhat. "Hey, you asked… and incidentally, every time my age reached a level of infinity I would set the counter back a zero and make my way up again. I kept doing that, maintaining that little tradition of mine through all of my lives past and present; until eventually I had lived for literally 2017 eternities consecutively, back to back."

"That's just…" Serena started but paused, unable to even form a coherent thought or sentence.

"Wow!" Bonnie added, and they both silently agreed that about summed up what they were trying to say.

"What do you even do with all that time?!" Serena emphatically asked; unable to believe anyone could've lived for as long as he did and not run out of things to do. She would have died of boredom long before then.

Thomas shrugged with complete nonchalance. "Stay out of trouble… very badly. I rescue civilizations, defeat terrible creatures, and just all around throw a wrench in the plans of many almighty beings. I save worlds, universes, and Omega Omnispheres wherever and whenever I can. I've even saved the Omni-Totality itself a couple of times; something I will always carry with me as a reminder, to hold me to the mark.

I've fought in two wars against my Totality's versions of O-Sirluko and Zeneptron; the former of whom was a non ZOF-enhanced Omnipotent being but omnicidal enough to tap into its power via Logic Manipulation, and the latter who was a ZOF Prodigy like me.

I've fallen in love many times over the recent eternities of my lives; only to lose those love lives to death. My first and one true soul mate has lived on much the same as I have and survived everything I did, but we had a massive falling out way back in our first lives together and only just recently made up. Sadly, she died once again in a recent battle against one of our many enemies, and was reborn somewhere I currently don't know the whereabouts of.

I helped defeat a Dark God called Omninoir Infinity alongside Ash Ketchum Infinity, Serena 9B3, my Soul Mate, and a guy named Calem Infinity... the five of us the Big Five Pokemon Masters of our Omega Omnisphere and the strongest of all the Double-O Pokemon Champions.

I was there and helped avert the ultimate calamity when another version of Omninoir created an almighty freeze of negate infinite degree ice, and spread it across Totality; during his final battle against his universe's Ash Ketchum. I've helped defeat an evil God Magic Conduit alongside Harry Potter, and fought alongside Omni Stitch and Yuna against an evil, all-powerful Genie. I created timeline remnants that helped foil Zorpox the Conqueror a couple of times alongside Ron Unstoppable and Kim Possible.

I've driven Omninoir 1 Million off once when he was terrorizing the 1 Millionth Pokemon universe in our Double-O, and I've competed in the Double-O Pokemon Championship tournament which I hosted back in my Omniverse, and came in second place while that aforementioned Ash Infinity won the whole thing. I also plan to implement this tournament once again while I'm here, and I hope to place as high as I possibly can. I've created many timeline remnants of myself to help out in multiple places at once and to assist wherever I can without having to split my own focus. I like to think I know myself pretty well and so I take pride in being everywhere in every version of the UV simultaneously… within reason of course.

To cap off that multi-eternal sequencing of events; I've recently fought against and defeated my ultimate arch enemy… my antithesis Anti Thomas Infinity, who is something of an Inverse Counterpart of me, with all of my powers and none of my moral constraints. Serena 9 by Infinity, who was the reincarnated spirit of my aforementioned soul mate… gave her life to end that battle. But thankfully, she took my adversary with her, leaving her to regenerate somewhere I currently don't know the whereabouts of.

And most recently, Ash Infinity committed suicide following the final battle with Omninoir IB, and the death of his love Serena 9B3. That makes us down two members of the Big Five; which technically makes us the Big Three, and that has such a less powerful ring to it if I'm being completely honest. But basically, every time I think I've seen and done it all; I remind myself that there's more to see… than can ever be seen… more to do than… wait a minute, hold on." Thomas paused a moment; somehow managing not to get too emotionally choked up while reflecting on everything.

Serena and Bonnie had been hanging on his every word, and even if they only understood a fraction of what he was saying and knew none of the people he mentioned; it was still abundantly clear he'd been through so much both good and bad. He met so many incredible people and Pokemon and even things beyond the confines of Pokemon itself; things that were completely alien by their standards. There were stories within stories, tales within epic tales, and heartaches within every single heartbreaking tragedy. It was simply too much new knowledge for both Serena and Bonnie to absorb all at once. Bonnie's heart went out to the poor man, even while she was feeling excited about the possibilities alternate dimensions offered them, and for her part Serena was pretty psyched as well. She'd been wondering about alternate dimensions and how they worked at the back of her mind ever since she first saw her Ash's doppelganger.

"I'm sorry that's the Lion King, but my point still stands; no matter how much I see, do, or go through, there's always more to reality and things change constantly. The Omni-Totality is forever growing, shrinking, creating, destroying, and never remaining the same for a single nanosecond, and there is so much, so much to see!" Thomas explained emphatically as Mirror Serena and Bonnie beamed at him brightly; letting him know in no uncertain terms that they were offering him their sincerest condolences.

Eureka was looking on the verge of tears and took Thomas's hand in her own; having been kept well away from a lot of the darker events in Thomas's career and brought out of her world following Ash Infinity's funeral. If she knew he had gone through so much personal tragedy following the death of her world's Serena, she would have never let him be alone again. One thing she and other Double-O Champions quickly realized was that Thomas didn't function well when he was completely alone; he needed constant companions with him even if and when he didn't want them.

"So, who wants to eat now you guys?" Thomas managed to say with a steady voice once explanations were done. Serena and Bonnie both nodded eagerly in unison; they felt bad for bringing up painful memories if his past but they didn't regret gaining all this insight into his past… even if it was all too much for them to digest at the moment. And while his words would need time to hit bottom their actual digestive tracks needed sustenance, and so they both agreed that it was time to get some food inside them. "Alright, let's eat… then how's about after we get you set up to see your brother again Bonnie.

I know we've been put through some emotional wringers today, but the sooner we get you set up to see him, the sooner you can move on with your life… believe me I know what that's like Bonnie." Thomas suggested to her with a look of pure pain as Bonnie nodded and swallowed a lump that had formed in her throat. It was time, she knew she needed this; that she needed to close that chapter in her life and accept that Clement was gone. He was at peace, he'd probably come to terms with his own death years ago, and she knew it was time for her to do the same. And Thomas was right about one thing; she was definitely proud of her now world famous brother, his name would go down in history as the man who saved Kalos at the time of its greatest crisis.

"Then after that, maybe you and Eureka can have a battle with your Pokemon against each other. I want to see for myself how powerful the Pokemon of people like you two are. And maybe it'll take your mind off your troubles." Serena added a suggestion of her own that everyone accepted unanimously.

"Sure thing, I wasn't coming here simply to have a vacation you guys. I was planning all along on grabbing the attention of your Ultra-Verse's Double-O Champions, and broadcasting a battle between my Pokemon and Eureka's to them seems like the perfect way to do that. This world would have ended up gaining their attention eventually even if I wasn't here; my being here will just be a means to safeguarding your world against threats too powerful for it to protect itself from.

Pokemon like mine and who train with any Double-O Champion can reach a level of Infinity; mine can go beyond that because of the ZOF and apart from myself, Serena 9BI, Serena 9B3, Ash Infinity, and Calem Infinity, who have all their Pokemon infused with its power. The rest of the Double-O Champions get to choose one Pokemon and one Pokemon only that they wish to have endowed with the ZOF. The five of us were all infused with that power; we were called the Big Five as you guys now know, and given that we're short two members at the moment I was hoping to fill that void with some new top tier Double-O Champions. I don't share the ZOF easily and those I share it with need to be the type of people who will respect my terms and conditions for endowing them with such power.

Those of us who can use Supreme Evolution, like myself and Eureka here; can also evolve Pokemon past their infinite limits, tapping into a power beyond the strongest mega evolutions. So basically, it's a very easily abused system in the wrong hands. But again, the rarity of Supreme Evolution makes it so that only myself, Eureka, Ash Infinity, Calem IB, and Serena 9 by Infinity can make use of it; though Ash Infinity's death complicated matters since we weren't able to find his ZOF infused Key Stone anywhere. Luckily, they all gave me their word that they wouldn't share it with anyone else without asking me first, and I trust that Ash Infinity set his affairs in order well enough to ensure that nobody he didn't deem a worthy successor to his mantel would inherit his Supreme Evolution Key Stone. You see, I've watched the Incredibles, and one of the most important lessons that it taught is that if everyone is super, no one will be. So I very strongly believe if everyone possesses the same powers at the same depths and magnitudes it wouldn't be special anymore; in fact, it would become redundant and that's the last thing I want given that I am a Zenith Omnidony. And while there is more to being what I am than my powers, the abilities I wield have always been and always will be a big part of who I am.

I'm lucky those I trusted this power with understand my reasoning, otherwise I might not have been able to entrust it to them. Before I shared the ZOF with the Double-O Champions, I was among the most unique creatures in existence, and with that one of the loneliest. But now, it's like I've got my family and fellow members of Totality's Mightiest Heroes back; albeit in a new generation and lifetime but still, the dynamic is there." Thomas continued wistfully, lost in an endless universe of memories that appeared bittersweet from his audience's perspective.

While Serena and Bonnie didn't know about this Supreme Evolution business or the story behind the Big Five or Totality's Mightiest Heroes they reckoned they'd find out soon enough. It was hard to follow Thomas's speech patterns given the descriptive, in depth way he explained everything, but Serena was relieved to find out she was keeping up pretty well. It still was a test of patience waiting for him to finally finish talking or conclude some kind of Professor Oak level lecture. Still, at least he made it interesting with his odd, eccentric quirks; she kind of wished she understood more of his cross-dimensional references because that had the potential to be more amusing if she did.

With all that said and done time suddenly unfroze all around them, and it was like watching a movie that had been paused for a long time only for someone to press play again. Everything resumed moving about, and the waiter arrived at their table in the admittedly extremely fancy restaurant. Serena and Bonnie both knew this was a five-star joint, that it probably cost a fortune but if what Thomas told them was all true then he was a man of limitless funds and means alike; probably in every existing currency to.

As they placed their orders and Thomas made some request about something called a Poutine and explained what it was to the Waiter; Serena and Bonnie both became lost in their own thoughts while Eureka merely sat there smiling. Eventually things quieted down as they placed their orders and the waiter walked off to inform the chefs of their choices, and as they all got comfortable in the leather booths they occupied Serena took the time to reflect on all she had learned today. Bonnie meanwhile, was looking forward to seeing the fight between Eureka and Thomas, but more than that she was extremely nervous about seeing her brother again. All the magic in her world wouldn't have been up to this task barring necromancy, yet Thomas was going to do it for her with no effort at all; like it was no big deal.

She knew that she'd never be able to repay him for what he was willing to do for her; just as she knew he didn't even expect so much as a thanks from her. He did this because he genuinely wanted to help her move past that incident and for someone like him it seemed that seeing her happy to see her brother one last time and finally get closure… was all the thanks he needed. But she wanted to do something for him anyways… not because she felt she had to but because she wanted to. She would think about how she went about thanking him while eating, but a part of her wondered what she would be able to offer a man with the power to have everything he desired?

XXXXX

Later that evening, Thomas and Eureka had accompanied Serena and Bonnie to her gym on the top floor of Prism Tower; the anticipation building to a crescendo inside the ladylike Bonnie upon realizing this was it. Thomas was about to do something for her that she could never do on her own; seeing her brother one last time and saying her goodbyes. She understood that while resurrection was far from being impossible for someone like him to achieve, he also couldn't in good conscience condemn somebody else to die just so her brother could live. In all honesty, Bonnie knew she wouldn't be able to do that either. Ironically enough, the pain of losing her brother had become something she wouldn't wish on anyone. She would never willingly put someone in the same position she was in now; some prices weren't worth paying and resurrecting the dead without care or remorse for who go hurt in the process was not worth bringing Clement back for.

The four of them stood in the middle of the gymnasium's battle field; Squishy and Dedenne looking out from Bonnie's satchel with evident anticipation while Thomas and Eureka both appeared outwardly calm. Serena was just as amazed as Bonnie was at what was about to happen; though she did a better job of hiding her anticipation. "Be there some manner of incantation?" Bonnie finally decided to ask; interrupting the suspenseful silence that had plagued them the whole trip up to the top of Prism Tower from Restaurant Le Wow.

Thomas grinned at her like the Cheshire Mew depicted in the famous blockbuster Alice in Pokemon Wonderland. "That depends upon the manner of Spiritual Summoning I choose to use. For a Zenith Omnidony there are actually countless different ways to summon a ghost from beyond the grave. I honestly can't decide which way to go with. Should I emulate the physiology of a meta-omnipotent death god and simply summon Clement's ghost with a swing of my sickle? Or should I use some manner of psychic and spiritual powers to serve as a medium? Hell, for all we know Clement could have chosen reincarnation and my attempts to summon him will be for naught. Or perhaps I should simply become a meta-omnipotent genie and have you wish to see your brother one last time to get some closure?

No matter which method I use Bonnie, bear in mind that the divide between life and death will be breached on at least some level. Even partial resurrection or spiritual summons can be dangerous if not done with extreme precision and great care. I am of course experienced enough to do this for you without too much trouble, but resurrection has never been an exact science and there are many, many variables to take into consideration and so many ways this could all go horribly wrong. You need to be sure you want this and that all you want is to seek closure; those of the dead have never and will never belong in the world of living and that is a fundamental truth of every Omega Omnisphere as a collective whole Bonnie.

Regardless of the universe or continuity; the duality of life and death must remain almost entirely separate at all times." Thomas explained to her with uncharacteristic seriousness. The last few hours had taught Bonnie and Serena many interesting things about this version of Thomas Infinity; one of them being he was rarely if ever serious about anything. He was eccentric to the point of madness, didn't seem to have many cares in the world, rambled on about seemingly nothing, and above all; whenever he did get serious about something you had better pay attention. The rambling thing he did was also surprisingly deceptive, because while annoying and seemingly about nothing; Serena and Bonnie both noticed he could slip in some important details when they weren't expecting him to. It was upon realizing this that they both decided to pay as much attention to him and his speeches as they could; in case he ended up leaking information beneficial for them to know.

"Um, maybe become a genie so I can make a wish." Bonnie suggested somewhat meekly; knowing that Thomas was asking her for her opinion on which method she thought he should use. Not that it made a difference to her or anything but he couldn't seem to decide which method to settle on. She couldn't even believe becoming some beyond all-powerful genie was even possible. The legendary Hoopa would be jealous beyond all measure; for while he was in essence a genie in Pokemon form he was not all-powerful in any shape or form.

Thomas grew a smile at this. "Transcendent Genie Physiology it is then!" he chortled gleefully, and before either Bonnie or Serena could process it, the man had instantly transfigured himself into a massive six-armed being of phenomenal cosmic power; no lamp, prison bottle, or anything else to bind or constrain him in any way, shape, or form. His skin was mottled and tinged with every color in the visible spectrum, and his eyes were a pair of white holes, irrevocably pushing out a never-ending stream of magical power and positive energy.

" _Make a wish Bonnie, let the memory of your brother's death course through you. Let it hurt, let it burn, but don't waste time asking why him or why me! Forget all that, concentrate only on one thing; say 'I wish to seek closure with my brother Clement and to see him one last time!' Whatever you do Bonnie, make sure to make the temporary nature of this resurrection very, very clear in your wish!_ " Thomas instructed her; his voice a pervasive echo that one might have been able to hear in an infinitely removed alternate reality, although they likely would have passed it off as the babble of the world.

Bonnie nodded and focused on finding the exact words; the exact phrasing of the wish she needed to be granted. Serena merely stood in silent awe upon glimpsing Thomas in his new form. If she had been skeptical of his alleged Godhood before; she sure as hell wasn't now. He quite literally reeked of omnipotence, or at least something like Bonnie's magic since she didn't have any concept of what absolute power reeked like; except his magic was impossibly stronger and making Serena feel extremely tiny.

Never had she felt so out of her depth before, but she certainly wasn't going to back out now and not be here for Bonnie when Clement was brought back however temporarily, and truth be told she had missed him terribly as well. Thomas really was a God it seemed, even Eureka who professed to have powers of her own; seemed unnerved by the level of power her mysterious friend evidenced. Serena was grateful despite being afraid of what he could do, especially since she and Clement had been romantically entangled once upon a time. No matter how fleeting their relationship had been she knew she needed this closure as much as Bonnie. Thomas was giving them a second chance to say their goodbyes properly, and God or not that was something very few people ever got. Serena was far more grateful for this than she let on.

Bonnie felt incredibly nervous and elated both at the same time; unable to believe this was really happening but refusing to chicken out now. She still couldn't believe this was really happening, and was far more appreciative of Thomas's gift than she could ever say. The only thing that could've made this better was if their crybaby Ash was here- Bonnie had always had a soft spot for the emotionally sensitive boy, and missed him more than she ever thought she could miss someone other than Clement- but she would have to make do for now.

"I wish… I wish to see my brother Clement one last time, by means of temporary spiritual summoning. I wish to say goodbye to him. I wish for the rift to remain closed to any and all spirits attempting to break free by force, and for my brother Clement to return to the land of the dead once all is said and done by me and by Serena here with me. I wish for the rift to close forever once all is said and done, and Clement is promptly returned to where his spirit belongs." Bonnie requested with all the formality and regality that came with 19-years-worth of propriety and ladylike kindness.

The colossal current form of Thomas nodded mutely before his white holes for eyes glowed with the brilliance of two ultra-luminous quasars and the world; the very skin of the Inverse Omega Omnisphere, convulsed with an unseen unfathomable force. The power continued to build to a fever pitch, like a symphony of every note of every music and song and power; all rolled into one Omni-Omega-Omnispherical masterpiece that could have roused the dearly departed of every dead soul in every afterlife. Yet this song of raw, enticing power was focused more or less on one particular individual, and both Bonnie and Serena held their breath as the world around them was very suddenly enshrouded in an impenetrable grey fog that neither believed could be broken by the move Defog. Bonnie wondered if this was some kind of fog of lost or departed souls; the amount of spiritual energy this place was giving off was way off the charts.

Thomas seemed to be the only one among them who accepted this bizarre abyss as normal; the entire world they knew had been displaced by this realm, and all of them realized that the endless white space all around them could trap them here for eternity just as readily as it did Clement. While Thomas merely hummed with approval, the rest grew intensely silent with mounting, suspenseful terror. Even Eureka seemed unnerved by the power her partner had just displayed and the pervasive aura of death all around them. "Where are we?" Serena finally voiced the question all of them were secretly wondering but where too scared to answer; her normal bravado failing her as her voice came out as a small whimper. "The Omni Nethersphere of your Totality… nearly every culture in every Double-O has some concept of the afterlife; the Omni Nethersphere is basically the unrestricted access point to all of them. Every version of the Omega Omnisphere has one in some form or fashion, and there is even an all-inclusive version of it that envelops the whole of Omni-Totality. They're every version of heaven and hell... every Egyptian afterlife, Greek underworld, every alien concept of the afterlife, and so on and so forth. All of them are interconnected by this place, a place of nexus if you will.

We could commune with the spirits of all the dead, and dearly departed throughout you guy's version of everything; no matter who they are and were, the universe they came from, or the time of their alleged death. We could potentially even run into our future selves who have died and ended up in this place, well, you guys maybe; perhaps even Eureka over here to, though I'm not so sure about me personally. My point is that this place doesn't obey the laws of time at all, so try not to run into your future dead selves and find out how you die; because that will burden us with a whole different sleuth of problems and temporal paradox loops I don't even want to think about.

Death has always existed in tandem with life and has been a constant in every version of Totality both in the past and future; so whatever curiosity you guys have about how your lives end… know that there is no stopping it. Death comes for us all in the end, even someone like me can only evade it for so long I reckon. That said, I have yet to encounter a version of the Double-O or the Omni Nethersphere that contains my own Zenith Omnidony spirit; although that may be because the ZOF handles its own afterlife system completely separate from this place… but I digress." Thomas explained with an eerie level of calm as his three companions involuntarily shuddered. Something about this place unnerved all of them, even Eureka started looking as pale as her inverted counterpart when she processed exactly where Thomas had brought them. Her minimal training as a Double-O Champion thus far didn't exactly cover trips into the all-in-one version of the land of the dead.

"We should probably make this quick you guys, all you need do Bonnie and Serena... is concentrate on the Clement you both knew and loved; your thoughts will guide you to him and this place will take care of the rest. However, it would be ill advisable for us to wander or the linger here too long; not just because of your future dead selves I fear. And no matter how curious I may be to explore this place I must reign in that temptation just this once. There are countless death entities surveying this place in search of any meddling necromancers and the like. Hell, there are ZOF enhanced death gods here that can even reap souls like mine, or the entire ON in one fell swoop if given the chance. And while I've always tried my best to respect them and their laws, and while some of them are actually really sweet, hauntingly beautiful girls; I've never wanted them to have to put up with me for any longer than is strictly necessary. Because they could end up deciding they want to keep me with them forever and I can't afford that luxury. They have a job to do as do I, and once in a while our respective jobs tend to overlap into each other's respective spheres of control. Here though, we all are playing by their rules; remember that you guys. We are all simply guests here.

Once you set everything in order and Clement is peacefully returned to his preferred afterlife… I'll take us all back to the Inverse Totality. With all that aside, all that's left to do is say the following phrase… _Allons-y Alonso_!" he exclaimed with a maddening gleam before reverting back to his non genie, more human looking guise, and awaiting the inevitable as Bonnie and Serena both began to put their fear of this place aside and focus on the powerful, mystical, magical Clement they both so knew and loved.

"That madman shalt be the death of us all." Bonnie remarked with perfectly accented medieval English as Eureka giggled and Serena smirked. Thomas seemed oblivious to their exchange of words and simply looked around him with awe and wonder; almost as though he hadn't seen this sort of thing thousands of times before. Bonnie and Serena both agreed that they didn't want to stay here any longer than strictly necessary and so continued to focus on summoning Clement's spirit. Memories of her dear brother filled her head with flashes and images, of all the times he'd used magical circles, crests, and the like to direct them on their travels; all the times their crybaby Ash looked up to Clement and Serena's joint leadership in their journey together. Everything leading up to the moment of his death atop Prism Tower, where me made his last stand against the leading magician of Team Flare known as Xerosic; all of it was relived by Bonnie and Serena both of whom remembered Clement a little differently.

They both felt a strange tugging sensation in the pit of their stomachs, and their eyes shot open when they felt a very welcoming and familiar presence; a welcome change to the otherwise eerie, otherworldly atmosphere of this realm. An apparition was now standing in their midst, taking the translucent form of Clement as Bonnie felt her eyes tearing up with overwhelming joy and Serena's eyes widened with stunned disbelief; unable to believe what and who she was witnessing. This violated pretty much every law of nature in Serena's opinion, death was supposed to be final and absolute; there wasn't supposed to be a way for people to be brought back however temporarily, yet she couldn't deny the truth of the matter anymore. All the proof she needed was standing before them, even if he wasn't in full color or anything, but he was indeed there.

"I can't believe that worked… you're here, you're really, really here." Serena sighed dreamily, while Bonnie nodded mutely in agreement and Eureka and Thomas hung back to give them some privacy.

"Bonnie, Serena, are you guys dead?!" Clement looked at them both in shock, evidently concerned about why and how they were here now. It was Bonnie who took the initiative this time; because Serena had grown absolutely still and silent at this point. She didn't know how to handle this, Clement was standing right in front of her, but he wasn't all there either. This see-through version of him was indeed a departed spirit, and no matter how happy she was her instincts as a mage were telling her he didn't belong in the world of the living anymore. He'd already passed on and was seemingly at peace with his death, but she answered him regardless.

"No, we're not dear brother, not yet anyways. We wanted to see you one last time, and I knew I needed to get some closure and say goodbye to you properly; otherwise I'd never be able to move on." Bonnie confided in him as Clement's eyes widened in horror.

"Bonnie, please tell me you didn't dabble in the black magics to pull this off; do you have any idea how dangerous that can be?! I know your intentions were pure and honorable but what you did was incredibly dangerous!" Clement started lecturing and scolding her like the protective older brother she remembered, and Bonnie was so swept up in her happiness to see him she didn't even have the capacity to be mad at him for jumping to such conclusions.

"I didn't use necromancy or any of the dark arts brother. I found another way, and I had some very… powerful help I think you'll remember." Bonnie informed him, glancing in Thomas's direction as all eyes fell on him. He smiled and waved at the three of them, then proceeded to grimace in pain as he suddenly collapsed. Eyes widening at this, Bonnie, and Serena were by his side only a split second behind Eureka, and Clement's spirit stood by while deciding to save the obvious questions for later as the strange, enigmatic man before them sat clutching at his chest.

"Hey, you alright there buddy?" Eureka asked him, outwardly appearing much calmer than she felt inside which was totally panicked. If a Zenith Omnidony collapsed in pain, (which was an intrinsically impossible occurrence in itself, considering Thomas's meta-omnipotent invulnerability) then that was a major cause for concern.

"It's nothing, my current body is sort of rejecting this place a little. I've regenerated so many times while on my deathbed that the Omni Nethersphere can't seem to decide whether I'm living or dead.

I've cheated death a limitless number of times; so you can imagine that the Omni Nethersphere wouldn't take kindly to that sort of thing… but I'm fine. Sorry if I ruined you guy's moment there, please feel free to carry on with the explanations Bonnie; you were doing so well." Thomas gave her an encouraging smile that did less to convince her of his good health than he probably hoped it would, but nevertheless she managed to smile back at him. She could sense he wanted them to drop the subject altogether, and while she knew he had a knack for cheating death and that this place wouldn't respond well to that; something told her there was more to it than that and he wasn't saying anything about it.

"Not to be rude or anything, but who exactly are you?" Clement's ghost asked him suddenly, and Bonnie and Serena both hid their smiles as Thomas managed to straighten up to his full height once again and regarded the specter with a maddening grin.

"You don't recognize me do you; that doesn't really surprise me actually; I look quite a bit different from the man I was when we last met. Perhaps this will jog your memory, do the words _Invariant Speed Barrier_ and _MOchu_ mean anything to you?" the Zenith Omnidony proclaimed with an all too familiar smug grin on his face, so resembling the one he wore back when he first stepped through the breach to return the non-crybaby Ash to his home dimension. Clement would have had to be really thick not to recognize him now, and once again Clement's intelligence availed him to seemingly no end.

"You're freaking kidding me. I can't believe you not only breached the dimensional barrier once more but managed to set up a spiritual summoning for my sister and I to talk; is there anything you can't do Thomas?!" Clement emphatically stated in recognition, adjusting his glasses on the bridge of his spirit nose due to sheer habit and staring at the man in front of him in utter perplexity. Thomas chuckled at this and Eureka quickly introduced herself as Bonnie's counterpart from the other world as Clement took this all in stride, and shifted his attention to his ' _twin_ ' sisters.

"Nice to see that my sister has grown into such a beautiful young lady in both universes." He complimented them with a kind smile. Both girls gained a healthy amount of coloring to their faces in response, evidently equally embarrassed by their brother's words of praise.

"Thanks Clement." Eureka sheepishly whispered while Bonnie couldn't even form words at this point; her emotions choking her up. Clemont's smile widened before he shifted his focus once again to lock eyes with Serena; who hadn't said anything up until this point. He was quite unprepared to see unbelievable anger and sadness in her cerulean colored eyes as she stomped over to him and attempted to slap him on the face, only for her hand to pass right through him. That slap hadn't hurt him in the slightest, but the emotional hurt he saw in Serena's expression definitely did; the normally stoic, strong, and confident girl he'd all but fallen in love with looked more broken than he'd ever seen her before, and it broke his heart seeing her like this.

"YOU SON OF A FUCKING BITCH! HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO US… to me?!" Serena shrieked at the top of her lungs, no longer caring if these so called Death Gods heard them or what anybody else thought. She had never been so angry and hurt before in her entire life. There were tears in her eyes by this point. Something she'd swore she would never do again in her lifetime was cry, but that all went out the window the second she saw him again. Clement didn't pay any mind to either Bonnie or Thomas at this point, all he cared about was explaining his situation to the girl standing before him; he had watched over them all in the years following his death, and had been immensely saddened by Serena's inability to let him go. He hated not being able to interact with her and his sister more, but all he could do was bear witness to their lives going on.

"Serena I…" Clement started, but Serena overshot him while everyone else merely stood by and gave them some time alone.

"Save it Clement, I get that you were doing everything you could to protect your hometown and the world beyond that; you died a hero and as far as dying goes there are worse ways for us to go. But still, I don't think I can ever forgive you for leaving me like you did. I'm sorry, I'll do my damndest to let this go but I don't think I ever will be able to. You didn't call us for backup, and you thought you could take on Xerosic alone. You didn't even consider the idea that you could get hurt or worse before we could get to you in time, and in such a dangerous situation that oversight cost you your life, and me several years of mine that were spent blaming myself for something I couldn't have changed. When the fact is you were the one who didn't wait for help to arrive, you were the one who recklessly got into the fight with Team Flare's leading magician, and it was YOU who foolishly believed your feeble magics were strong enough to take him alone. Bonnie is twenty times the magician you ever were and unlike you, she never let pride in her heritage cloud her better judgment like you did that day. And then there's Ash; you know... I can forgive you for hurting me, and I can even forgive you for breaking me a little bit inside, but what you put Ash through was unforgivable. The poor bastard was already emotionally sensitive, and your death was the final straw that broke the Camerupt's back for him. Bonnie and I haven't seen him again since, and I don't blame him one bit for leaving like he did. You let us down in ways you cannot even begin to imagine Clement, and you let me down.

So please, don't say or do anything to make it worse. Just try and understand that while I don't hate you or wish you any ill will; I can't let this go or forgive you either. I'm sorry, but I've fallen out of love with you." Serena explained to him with such resolution and conviction in her every word that nobody doubted she was telling the truth. Clement sighed in resignation, knowing he'd majorly screwed up by going and dying on her and Bonnie. In a weird way, he was almost glad her anger towards him outweighed the pain of his passing. It may end up helping her to move on faster and it may also enable her to not miss out on someone even greater than Clement could ever have been. The way she spoke of Ash clearly indicated he meant more to her than she knew, and Clement wasn't about to object if anything happened between them if and when they ever reunited. He completely understood Serena's understandable anger, and he had nothing to say to try and convince her to forgive and forget about this. He majorly screwed up; his time spent in the afterlife had given him a lot of time to think and contemplate all the bad decisions he made. And he knew there was no fixing things with Serena; at least not right now.

"I understand completely Serena. I swear I truly do; if I were in your position I doubt I'd be any less unforgiving. If you can somehow learn not to hate me in the future; then I guess that's enough. Fact is I massively screwed up, and I know there is no fixing this with you; all I can say is that I wish you all the best from here on out and that hopefully time might dull some of the hurt and anger you feel towards me. If not though I can accept that as well, just know that I will always care for you Serena and that I never meant to hurt you so." Clement sighed understandingly, and Serena nodded curtly in acceptance of his answer.

"Then I guess that's all I have to say to you Clement; thank you for understanding why I had to say what I said. Maybe I'll let this go in time but I'm not making any promises right now; your words are appreciated nonetheless. Now, I believe that Bonnie would like to say a few words of her own to you now, so I won't take up anymore of our remaining time here." Serena replied with composure as she stepped away from Clement; a massive weight lifting from her shoulders that she hadn't known was there.

She felt lighter than she had in years, and was pleasantly surprised by how vented her anger towards Clement felt now that she got to say and do everything she swore she would say and do if ever she managed to see him again. She could feel her entire body relaxing with the level of relief she felt right now, and she knew she would be forever grateful to Thomas for giving her this opportunity to scream her face off at Clement. She felt like she had just gone through years upon years of therapy all in the span of a few minutes, and it left her feeling so cleansed and feeling purer and fresher than she had felt even before Clement had died. She couldn't wait to tell Ash about all of this, and wished more than anything he could be here with her. Now more than ever; she could've used his emotional support. He always had the sensitivity necessary to cry when she couldn't, and to say and do the things she was emotionally too scared to say and do. She felt bad for picking on him earlier on, and only wanted to toughen him up a little. Now though, she accepted and adored him for the shy, nice, emotional guy he truly way deep inside.

"Hey there Bonnie, I'd ask if you hated my guts like Serena does and frankly I doubt I'd be any position to argue with you if you did. I made a grave mistake thinking I could take on Xerosic alone and walk away from that confrontation alive. And although I managed to cripple Team Flare's operation in the process of doing so, the fact is I should have had the foresight to wait for backup before taking him on. I've had a lot of time here to wonder what I could've done different and Bonnie I'm so, so sorry. Losing Serena's trust was hard enough for me, it hurts more than I can ever say; though I can't say I didn't see it coming, and I know I've probably warranted some anger from you as well Bonnie.

I know I don't deserve any forgiveness for not being there for you when you needed me the most, but I am asking for it anyways Bonnie. Do you think you can somehow find it in your heart to forgive me, if not now then maybe someday in the future?" Clement pleaded imploringly, tears welling up in his bespectacled, ghostly eyes; which seemed so alive and dead at the same time... paradoxes be damned. He was quite unprepared for when Bonnie threw her arms around him, and both of them were more than a little surprised when Bonnie was able to touch him. Neither one of them questioned it though, and fell into each other's embrace, and none of them saw Thomas's face breaking into a secret smile as his eyes glowed; clearly having allowed the physical contact somehow.

"I was never angry and resentful with you like Serena was; not for lack of trying on my part at some intervening moments but I could never hate you brother dear. I guess I just don't have the heart for holding onto a grudge like Serena does, but all I've ever wanted was to see you one last time. To say how much I still love and miss you even now." Bonnie was hysterical at this point, crying so hard that she was hyperventilating between every few words she spoke. Clement felt his heart breaking at seeing his little sister so sad and flooding with warmth upon hearing her heartfelt words of adoration towards him; it was a strange sensation. But he wasn't about to complain as she continued to cling to him like her life depended on never letting him go. He held her close to his no longer beating heart for what felt like a small blissful eternity, but even eternity didn't last forever as Thomas cleared his throat tentatively to get their attention.

"I'm ever so sorry to ruin such a tender moment like this Bonnie, but we should really be getting out of here sooner than later. I've been able to mask our presences here for the time being, but that'll only work to a certain point. Eventually Clemont's slight absence from his chosen afterlife will be noticed, and my presence here isn't exactly… easy for me to hide." Thomas explained with tremendous amount of sympathy to Bonnie and the others, his eyes locking on Serena with a sad smile as she stood off to the side half-glaring, half-staring longingly at Clement and Bonnie's emotional exchange of words and hugs.

"Yeah, how did you do this exactly Thomas? If you were going for a spiritual summons why not simply summon my spirit in the world of the living where it's safer?" Clement wondered idly.

"Because that would have made the rift between the worlds of the living and the dead even larger than was strictly necessary. By opening it just long enough for me to transport us to the Omni Nethersphere here, and closing the rift behind us while masking our presences; I was able to minimize the risk of any of the more dangerous spirits breaking through to the land of the living. Bonnie wished for the rift to be closed forever once we're done here, although I doubt that will truly be possible sadly. Other Zenith Omnidonae aside from myself have always messed with things they shouldn't; simply because we are meta-omnipotence made incarnate some of us think we can do whatever the hell we want and not have to bear the consequences of our actions." Thomas explained with a tone dripping with acid, surprising them all with the level of bitterness in his voice.

"Um, are you okay there?" Serena asked him, feeling concerned for her and Bonnie's fascinating new friend and a little unnerved by his sudden bout of anger. Who knew the man could be downright terrifying when even the slightest bit pissed off?

"No I'm not okay Serena, because I just picked up on the fact that Clemont's death wasn't entirely his fault. It was indirectly caused by another being in a far off universe; fucking about with the balance over life and death. I didn't see it at first when Clement initially showed up, but now I can sense his life was taken by the Omega Omnisphere in exchange for another who had been resurrected in a far off universe.

I don't know who this person fucking about with the Balance of all dualities in all Omega Omnispheres is, but when I find out they're going to be sorry they ever caused your demise Clement. However indirectly responsible they were, the final battle between you and Team Flare's Xerosic would have played out very differently had it not been for this." Thomas explained to them through gritted his teeth, his endlessly colorful eyes lighting up in a blaze of fury as all of them realized what he was getting at.

"Wait a minute, are you seriously saying Clement may not have died were it not for this son of a bitch who decided to play Arceus with somebody's life?" Serena demanded, suddenly angry at someone other than Clement and wanting to find out the identity of this person while Thomas nodded slowly; letting it sink in with all of them as Clement, Bonnie, and even Eureka looked at him in utter perplexity.

"It doesn't really change what I did or anything, so I don't really see what difference it makes at this point. If my life was taken as some sort of exchange to compensate for a resurrected soul, then that just means my life was taken to not only restore the balance of power but also to punish me for my foolishness back at Prism Tower. This is my penance you guys, and with or without outside interference I had this coming." Clement told them with acceptance of his fate; his willingness to accept recent events surprising even Serena as Thomas inhaled sharply and breathed through his nose in an effort to calm himself slightly.

"Nevertheless Clement, I need to find this person abusing their resurrection powers. It is possible they may not know the consequences of their actions which would only be ignorance… but I think it's more likely that they just don't care, and if that's the case they need to be stopped before any more lives are sacrificed to restore the Balance this person keeps upsetting." the Zenith Omnidony told them as Eureka nodded in acceptance and Bonnie looked more shocked than anything.

"How can anyone be that ignorant or cruel?! Don't they understand cause and effect, I don't understand why my brother had to pay the price for someone else messing about with life and death!" Bonnie sniffed sadly, still somewhat emotional upheaved from her physically impossible hugging session with Clement and unable to even properly register the fact that his death might not have been a tragic accident but something deliberate to restore some cosmic balance. Thomas sighed morosely at this; his sympathy for the poor girl knowing no bounds at this point.

"Every action we take in life has consequences Bonnie; being a Zenith Omnidony means I have complete awareness of what those consequences are but not every sentient species has that kind of insight, in fact none of them really do. Clement's death was decided not by a Zenith Omnidony but by the Omega Omnisphere itself, and as an unconscious omnipotence force it doesn't care who lives or who dies… only that the balance is restored. Save a life and a life must be taken in exchange; this is one of the fundamental laws of almost any Totality; it was made to teach those of us with the powers of Gods that every action we take has ramifications whether or good or bad. Add to that the fact that my people's power source enforces this rule even amongst my own God Tier, and it's just a shitty system all around. But still, anyone who abuses that system is the real problem here.

It isn't really fair that Clement was the one chosen to restore the balance, but that's life Bonnie; you either have all the luck in existence or none at all. Some people just get the short end of the stick for no particular reason and that's just the way things are. Clement, I'm glad you're accepting of this but nevertheless, it's part of my job to find this usurper of creation and death and stop him before any more lives are taken indirectly." Thomas reiterated his statement to Clement while Bonnie nodded slowly in grudging acceptance of the matter.

Eureka took it from there and added her piece. "This is what he does you guys. Zenith Omnidonae are often charged with tasks such as maintaining the Balance over every duality in every single version of Totality they're capable of accessing; ensuring the Omni Dimensional Continuum of the Omega Omnispheres remain intact and that all their respective fixed points happen no matter what, no matter how many people die to keep the timelines intact, and even things such as putting the fear of God into… God, or rogue members of the Omnipotence Nexus who exercise their powers over their respective creations without any mercy." She said, filling them all in on some of the huge responsibilities people like Thomas were sometimes entrusted with. Serena, Bonnie, and Clement all looked towards Thomas Infinity in a different light.

"That all sounds ridiculously convoluted; it's no wonder you're crazy... having to live this kind of life would drive anyone mad." Serena brashly stated.

Thomas chuckled with slight malice, finding a bit of dark amusement in her words. "Oh trust me, you people have no idea." He stated cryptically; causing them all to shudder.

"Absolute power absolutely corrupts all but the best it seems. I guess you've just got to make the best of your situation huh?" Clement asked him as Thomas gave a lopsided grin in return.

"Living this life takes a... certain kind of tenacity; one very few mortals have any reference frame for in actuality. That said, I wouldn't have it any other way. I've written more eulogies than you will ever know, and I have watched more people walk out of my life than one could ever possibly count, but it's about time I grew up in all honesty. Every time I wonder if these powers are more trouble than they're worth; I ask myself the all-important questions. Like how many worlds and people my eternities of regret and betrayal have saved; when I think about the answer in a logical manner... I realize the good I have done with these powers vastly outstrip the bad. And besides, thanks to what I am I've actually made a positive difference in the entire Omni-Totality; how many people can say that? Not very many from where I'm standing. I have a duty of care to these people; to all of the mortals I would be failing to save if I didn't have these powers. When I think about it like that; I would gladly go through all of the 2000 eternities worth of heartache and loneliness again and again just to see the fruits of my labor... to see the countless people I'm saving live, love, and laugh. What I am and what I can do are a gift, and I wouldn't trade being a Zenith Omnidony for anything!"

Eureka smiled at Thomas knowingly while the others just looked on in awe; boundlessly moved by his words as his lemon haired beauty of a companion decided to tease Thomas a little. "A Zenith Omnidony's capacity for love and other emotions are also as proportionate to their powers as their libidos are! Just ask Serena 9 by Infinity how amazing a lover this guy is." She winked at her doppelganger, Clement's spirit, and Serena in turn as Thomas broke out into a full-body blush for the first time that Clement, Bonnie, and Serena had ever seen. They knew it was dangerous for them to stay out here for extended periods but none of them could help getting swept up in conversations about ranging topics and Clement couldn't honestly remember having this much fun just chatting people up since before he died.

"That's awesome; I wasn't sure about you at first but after hearing your speech just now I've had a chance of opinion, and I can see the good in what you do now. You may be crazy, but I can't deny you've got an ass-load of heart." Serena whispered with uncharacteristic respect in her voice. She was supposed to be the tough and durable one in her group, the strong and indomitable woman whom everyone looked up to, and yet this man's words of passion and kindness were making her heart squeeze in fond remembrance of another man who wore his planet-sized heart on his sleeve. Arceus, she missed Ash Ketchum, and if anyone but her found this information out she'd never live it down.

"Only by choice Serena, Thomas is one of the select few of his entire race who is brave enough to open his heart to the full force of the ESIT. That's the Emotional Spectrum of Infinite Totalities for those of you not familiar with our abbreviations. A lot of Zenith Omnidonae are cowards when it comes to opening their hearts to this degree; so far Thomas here and Ash Ketchum's Infinity doppelganger are the only Zenith Omnidonae I've known who open their hearts on this insane scale. Whenever one of Thomas's people does this, not only does their emotional capacity become as beyond limitless as their powers, but it endows them with something Thomas calls meta omni-empathy, making him the most compassionate guy you'll ever know." Eureka explained to her and Bonnie; the former quirking an eyebrow and the latter throwing him a dazzling smile. That there was a man to respect, and if she and Serena weren't so enamored with their crybaby Ash they might've considered sharing Thomas instead.

"Eureka! Exactly what are you trying to achieve by telling them all this?! You're not exactly cut out for being my wing woman you know!" He exclaimed in a series of emphatic gestures and flailing arms. Said girl merely giggled playfully and winked at him. Serena chuckled at the girl's forward and rowdy nature which was a stark contrast to Bonnie's princess-like demeanor. Clement shook his head in amused exasperation; sensing his sister's counterpart had a thing with Thomas, and surprised that a so called meta omni empathic such as himself hadn't picked up on her feelings yet. He could also tell that while both Bonnie and Serena were forever grateful to him for arranging all this; they weren't interested in him in the romantic sense.

"Thomas, while we're all here and together I'd like to ask that you look after Bonnie and Serena for me? Do you think you can make sure they're safe and happy; as a personal favor to me?" Clement decided to make this his official dying wish as Thomas nodded without hesitation, his eyes looking so ancient and powerful in those moment that Clement felt sorry for the poor fool who tried to accost his sister or Serena.

"Traveling with me gets really dangerous and attracts the most dangerous Zenith Omnidonae to me and my friends like Venomoths to the flame. But I promise you Clement, and you guys as well; that I'll do everything in my power to help you both live happy, healthy lives. So what do you say Bonnie and Serena, you guys feel like checking out some whole new worlds? I'm honestly seeing all of this for the first time, this version of Totality; so I'd like to see more of it, and I was hoping I wouldn't have to peruse it alone. I'd like if we could get Ash on board as well; for old time's sake." Thomas asked them as the seasoned Pokemon trainer and prodigious magician girl exchanged significant glances.

For Serena, she didn't have any qualms whatsoever about accompanying Tom on his never-ending journey across time and space; if anything his warnings about the dangers and everything else just made her all the more eager because apart from dwelling on her anger towards Clement for dying like he did, things were spectacularly uneventful. Her Pokemon team was about as strong as it was going to get on her earth and she was one of the best trainers on her entire planet, yet it wasn't enough. She and her Pokemon alike weren't satisfied with themselves and now a Godlike being was giving them the opportunity to set the bar infinitely higher for themselves… how the fuck could the honey blonde girl say no at this point?

Besides, it's not like there was really anything for her back on her Pokeearth. She and her mom weren't exactly a close knit family. She knew it was time to move on; just her, Bonnie, and Ash like it was always meant to be, and the time had come for her to expand her horizons beyond the confines of her world. Thomas could give her that, and he was willing to show her across the whole of reality and maybe even give her powers not dissimilar to his. She knew her mind was made up the moment Tom asked them to come along with him; the question was whether or not Bonnie was also ready to take that cosmic leap into the unknown.

Bonnie on the other hand, was scared out of her wits. She felt as though was looking out from the shore into the icy blue waters, the river of opportunities and infinite possibilities that had started flowing her way, and she was stricken with paralysis and indecision. She had all these options now; she could accompany her lifelong friend, her counterpart, and a seemingly All-Powerful Being to whole new worlds and things she would never have deemed possible; see sights and wonders beyond her wildest dreams and be and do anything she ever wanted.

The metaphorical waters looked extremely alluring and she was just dying to go for a swim; the problem was she just wasn't sure if she was daring enough to take the plunge. She was scared to see the new version of herself that she would become when she swam to the other side; scared of becoming someone she no longer recognized as herself. Could she really go so far outside of her own persona she spent a lifetime creating, her lifelong comfort zone, or was she doomed to spend her days defending her brother's gym and legacy in Lumiose Gym; never becoming her own person with her own legacy in the process?

' _Well, when my mind puts it like that, it's kind of hard for me to say no isn't it_?' Bonnie thought wildly; feeling an explosive burst of courage and daring going off inside her as she nodded eagerly right alongside Serena.

"I'd be honored." They both said simultaneously, and then looked at each other while chuckling at their synchronous response. Clement was beaming, and Eureka was smirking while Thomas grinned like a madman one second; then suddenly drew a face of concern as though sensing something foreboding that they didn't.

"I think we need to leave now." Eureka piped up, evidently sensing the same thing that Thomas did but going pale when he shook his head.

"It's too late now Eureka, we're about to have company and if we try to run at this point it'll only increase our alleged guilt of the crimes we'd likely be accused of. Best just to stick around while I explain the situation and reassure our gracious host of the altruism of our intentions rather than turn tail and get ourselves convicted without a trial. Am I to take it that I'm speaking to the IB Counterpart of all Death Gods, Goddesses, and Entities across the Omni-Totality? it's been a long time Zina..." Thomas greeted to someone apparently invisible. For a while, there was no response of any kind; Clemont, Bonnie, Serena, and even Eureka held their breath as the suspense continued to build, and they released a collective series of forceful exhales when a hauntingly beautiful and ever enticing female voice echoed pervasively through the white mist of the entire Omni Nethersphere, yet somehow only they could hear her.

"Indeed it has young ZOF Prodigy, and for the record; an IB Counterpart of myself has yet to be established... I'm just the temporary place holder for the title; the stand-in, the steward who looks after the property if you will, until such a time where my actual IB Self is born of the ZOF. To what do I owe the honor of this visit my ancient friend?" The voice giggled gleefully, almost as though she was overbearingly greeting an old friend and never intended to let him out of her sight again.

Bonnie and the others were startled when she suddenly materialized before them without any flashy light-shows of any kind. She wasn't there a split-second ago and then she suddenly was; it was very disconcerting. She resembled a cross between a goth and punk style girl that was the most attractive goth girl any of them had ever laid eyes on. She had hair as black as Thomas's and shimmering silver eyes that were hypnotic and alluring enough to lull any man to sleep forever more.

She wore jeans with rips in the knees; a metal chain around her neck, spiked cuffs on her wrists, and a black top with an exposed pale-white midriff and a perfectly toned, flawless core. She wore skull earrings and had pink and blue highlights in her jet black hair.

To top it all off, her shirt had the words ' _I'm the death everybody desires most'_ etched on her chest in a most provocative manner; right over top of her perfectly sized breasts that a man could hold in his hands.

Thomas smiled with genuine warmth, no sign or trace of his usual insane grin as the girl suddenly and without warning flung her arms around him in a fond embrace. She sighed contentedly as he held her by her bared lower back; his hands wrapping around her perfectly toned waist. Her petite frame barely came to his shoulder yet there was no doubt in anyone's mind she was a match for his mastery over the ZOF. Eureka sighed with a shake of her head. ' _What is it with his ability to attract all these gorgeous women?! He could have the most massive harem in any Omega Omnisphere yet the only girl he wants to be with is the one he's having the most difficulty maintaining his relationship with. I actually kind of feel sorry for him, having to look after the needs, wants, and desires of as many women as he does. But many of us love him and are willing to share him, myself included_.' She mused internally.

She could tell the two of them had a history together and that there was some kind of substantial romantic chemistry… maybe not ESIT Soul Bond worthy but they were definitely close. Truth be told she'd had feelings for Thomas for a long time, and when her universe's Serena died, or as he so endearingly called her, Small Pond… all of them had been hit pretty hard as hers was the same as a death in their own family. Before she died though she'd been Thomas's constant companion throughout the larger Ultra-Verse… and now Eureka was at an impasse where her feelings for Thomas were concerned.

She knew she was ready to take whatever the two of them had to the next level, and she fully understood he could never love another the way he loved his Forever Bond Mate; she accepted that she and all the other girls he got romantically entangled with would place second on his priority list. He made this quite clear when they asked him who among them he loved the most. He was so honest about it and truth be told he wouldn't have even gotten with any of them in the first place, if it wasn't for them pushing or the falling out he and his bond mate had back in Double-O's immemorial. Many of them still accepted being in a non-exclusive relationship with him; especially since a lot of them had first loves as well including Serena 9 by 3 who was with Ash Infinity at the time, or Myra the Blue Mew and Ash 9 by 6 who were actually also by the ESIT. Bonnie knew she'd never be first on Thomas's list of romantic entanglements, but she was willing to settle for that if only she could be with him… however fleetingly.

She loved him too much to let her pride over being number one keep her from trying to make it work, and she knew there was more than enough love in his heart to go around; that he would need all the love and lovers he could get to make the responsibilities he bore that much easier. But still, it had been frustratingly tedious just getting him to do as much as kiss her Kalos style. He'd been strongly against pursuing any of his emotional entanglements any further, ever since he and his ESIT bond mate managed to literally kiss, make-up, and fuck… right before she died and regenerated somewhere. She still had to admit to getting a little territorial of Thomas however; when she saw how this gorgeous death goddess was fawning over him so fondly.

She couldn't even fathom how someone could claim to have not been such a chick magnet in his mortal lifetime as Thomas Currie; especially not when he now had most of the female Double-O Champions. Some of the most powerful and gorgeous women in the whole of Reality were willing to share him in a non-exclusive relationship. Granted, it wasn't exactly a perfect arrangement as harems were often seen as, and things could get messy and out of control more often than not. But in his own way Thomas loved each and every female Double-O Champion and Zenith Omnidony he dated.

He said it was his ultimate fantasy brought to life, and given that he was the author of all their respective stories throughout the UV once upon a time; he was so unbelievably honored to be able to date their real life selves even if only for a while. It had been one of the more passionate speeches he'd spoken to them, and a lot of the girls who had been hesitant about the non-exclusive relationship with him melted right then and there. The best part was he never even expected to be as lucky as he was, and when he found out how fortunate he was in the relationship department he made damn well sure everybody knew how blessed he felt. He never took any of them for granted, yet he never failed to be honest with them about his thoughts and feelings either. Truth be told, it was beings like Serena McIntyre and even Eureka herself who acted as his wing women and who promoted his boyfriend image across the Ultra-Verse.

Eureka didn't think most men could make such a polygamous romantic relationship work, but Thomas managed just fine, and it really helped that all the Double-O Champions were comrades, friends, and as close knit as a family could be. She never used to believe there was such a thing as the perfect boyfriend, but apparently she was simply looking at the wrong species. Thomas had brought them the ZOF and his ZOFed knowledge and wisdom. He was there for everyone he could be there for and brought Totality's Mightiest Pokemon Masters as close to each other as the legendary TMH likely were. He even made it possible for there to be an Omega Omnisphere Championship Tournament and for bonds between all the almighty Pokemon Masters to grow ever stronger. Without him, there wouldn't even be a Big Five of the Double-O Champs, and what a strong Big Five they were; easily on par with the founding members of TMH that was their group's namesake.

Eureka was brought out of her surprisingly long internal musing when the death goddess named Zina suddenly pulled away from Thomas's embrace and time resumed its normal pace for the lemon haired beauty.

"You've caused quite the stir here in the Omni Nethersphere Thomas; you should consider yourselves lucky I got here first. If I hadn't, you might not have had so much luck explaining why there is a clearly departed soul here in your midst, and outside of his stationed and intended afterlife. Care to tell me what that's about?" Zina questioned him with a quirked eyebrow. Clement gulped nervously, knowing that he'd technically broken the rules, but hoping that Thomas might be able to explain that the rule they'd broken in actuality is not as bad as the rule they'd likely be accused of breaking in this situation.

Thomas held his hands up in a gesture of placation. "Zina, I swear, this was just a temporary spiritual summons of Clement's soul, so that his sister and Serena could say their goodbyes properly. I was just using my powers to help give them some closure on this matter, that's it, that's all. None of this is their fault; I take full responsibility for all of this and place my fate entirely in your hands. You can judge whether or not you believe I am telling the truth, but something tells me you know me well enough to know that I'd never deliberately upset the Omni-Omega-Omnispherical Balance of power. No matter my face or my personality that's been one of the few genuine constants I've maintained in my entire regeneration cycle, but alas these are merely words on my part. It's up to you whether or not you believe me Zina, but if you do end up feeling like I should be convicted of the crime of resurrecting the dead, then please do not hold these people responsible as they were my actions alone." Thomas explained away as Zina's expression remained perfectly neutral, betraying none of her thoughts and feelings.

"You could have simply summoned Clement's apparition into the world of the living; why come here if you don't mind me asking? The risk of getting caught doing this small favor is much higher in this realm, surely you knew that." Zina queried as Clement, both Bonnie's, and even Serena paled slightly.

"Because I didn't have anything dangerous or any ill intent to hide; while the risk of getting caught in the act was minimal outside of this realm so to was the risk of the rift between life and death getting out of control ever larger. I also didn't want for us to be convicted of unlawful resurrection of the dead when that's not the rule we were breaking in the first place, and if we had arranged this meeting with Clement in the land of the living; it would have constituted a greater feeling of distrust towards us by the entities that control this realm.

Coming here to do the summons was an act of faith on my part and reassurance to the powers that be that my intent was neither willful nor malicious. At the very least, doing a temporary spiritual summons in this realm would earn us a trial, and it is an infinitely more minor offense than full on resurrection if I am not mistaken." Thomas responded promptly, his tone leaving no room for Tauros shit of any kind and practically leaking out his sincerity. If Zina didn't believe him and the altruism of his intentions at this point Eureka didn't know what else could be done to convince her; then again Zenith Omnidonae were capable of being infinitely skillful liars so it was hard to say with absolute certainty if Thomas was ever being 100 percent honest with anyone not on his own absurd level of power, skills, and abilities.

Zina nodded barely a second after Thomas finished speaking; a teasing smirk plastered on her face. "You've given me no reason to doubt you in any of your past lives and we both know you'd be unwise to lie to me now. You wouldn't have anything to gain from resurrecting a soul like Clement's other than what you have described to me. That said, you did technically commit a minor offense, but so long as you return Clement here to his proper resting place as you promised then I see no reason to hold any of you here. After all, it isn't really any of your times now is it. Though that can change very quickly believe me..." she said with a significant knowing glance sent in Thomas's direction that had him shifting somewhat nervously and the others wondering what she meant by that. They all heaved a collective sigh of relief at this point, and Thomas gave another dazzling, heart melting smile.

"Thank you Zina, and I promise I will do exactly as you asked me to. If you wouldn't mind sticking around with us to oversee Clement's return to his final resting place; I would like to make sure my new traveling companions here have said all they needed to say to their friend and brother." Thomas offered a not so subtle hint for her to stay here with them; as another act of faith to show that he wasn't trying to pull a fast one on her. Zina beamed at him as well, glad she was able to help a brother and sister say their final goodbyes. She knew she would do whatever she could to help Appaneesty 726 at this point, because aside from his IB counterpart he was her favorite iteration of Appaneesty. Some parts of her hated her job, hated having to be the Meta Omniarch of all death gods and abstract forces of death, hated standing in for the IB Counterpart of the Entity she represented. Someone had to keep the other forces of death in line though, and at least she could make her job a little more bearable by making sure the Omni Nethersphere of every Double-O was as accommodating in all its forms to every departed soul as she could make it be.

"It's no big deal, it's the least I can do. And Clement, while the circumstances surrounding your departure from the living world hurt your sister and girlfriend deeply; I'm not quite as unforgiving as blondie over there. Because you have lead a reasonably good life, you can expect your treatment in the afterlife to be good as well. One's afterlife is often a mirrored version of their mortal journey; just the same as your version of Totality is an inverted version of the one someone like Appaneesty here is used to seeing most often." Zina kindly told them with an emphatic gesture in Thomas's direction.

"Who's Appaneesty?" Serena wondered, having heard the name several times but not knowing why it seemed to be so significant. Thomas burst out laughing almost uncontrollably at this, finding it refreshing that nobody here seemed to know that name or its significance aside from him and Eureka to a certain degree he supposed.

"It's who I am, it's who I was in my first life; before my entire regeneration cycle began and I became the version of me you see here before you. Appaneesty is perhaps still the biggest part of who I am even today, though Thomas Currie is definitely a close second; some of my lifetimes have left more of a lasting impression on my reincarnation cycle than others. Thomas Currie and Appaneesty were two of my personal bests and personal favorites as far as past lives go.

Just hearing that name, hearing someone call me by my first name ever in my first life ever; it does me a world of good Serena. You guys can address me by Tom or Thomas if you'd rather, but I'd be just as comfortable answering to Appaneesty. Though admittedly, there are some among the Double-O Champions who feel uncomfortable addressing me as such, for reasons I need not get into right now because I feel I've rambled enough times for one day." Thomas replied lengthily as Serena and Bonnie felt their heads spinning from the overwhelming dumping of information they'd just been subjected to. Just hearing the man talk was like listening to a fully qualified Pokemon Professor launching into a lecture on his favorite subject; though Thomas's speeches seemed more interesting and a lot more entertaining with his quirkiness and tendency to add in funny references and sayings that made one rethink their initial opinion of him as just an egghead. Apparently he was also the biggest oddball ever. Serena would consider it a fortune if she ever managed to understand even half the crazy things he said at any point in her lifetime.

"If you guys are going to be traveling with him, be careful now; he's a real crafty devil that one." Zina grinned teasingly, never one to pass up the opportunity to take the mickey out of Appaneesty. She liked to think that her personality was surprisingly human for one so old and powerful as an Entity like her. She knew Clement felt significantly less afraid knowing every afterlife system was being watched over by her, and she was glad she able to decrease people's fear of death and to break the stereotypes surrounding every death god and goddess in every version of the Double-O out there.

She wasn't some crazy ass, hooded phantom out to kill anyone and everyone who's time had come; she was actually quite reasonable, at least she hoped she was because she really wanted to paint the abstract forces and entities of Death in a much more positive light, and to make her job as painless for everybody involved as she could. She sometimes hated what she had to do but her services were deemed completely necessary by the ZOF in nearly every Omega Omnisphere.

Clement took the initiative at this point, knowing his time with Bonnie and Serena was drawing to a close and that there was little left for him to say. "Serena, despite how much I hurt you by dying on you know that I never wanted you to wind up alone in the world. I still love you, and as I said before if you can find it in your heart not to hate me then I'll take whatever I can get from you." Clemont paused as Serena seemed to accept this with a slow nod, a small smile reluctantly forming on her face.

"Bonnie, you've always been the true magician in the family, and you've come a long way from the ladylike sister I've known all these years; just know that me and our mom are so proud of you and we'll always be watching over you. Use the magic you inherited from our family and go accomplish wonders out there amongst the stars. From what I've seen of future events while staying here I can honestly say that Thomas will need all the help he can get in the coming days. So look after Serena for me, and both of you; if you could also give my regards to Ash at some point in the future I'd be forever grateful. He was like my brother, and we all love him dearly." Clement wrapped it all up as Bonnie threw her arms around him again and broke down into renewed sobs; though these tears were tears of joy.

She now knew that she'd never really lost Clement, that death was always on the reverse side of life and the line between them wasn't as unbreachable as she first thought. She felt comforted by the fact that even though she wouldn't be able to see him and even if he couldn't interact with her physically, he would always be watching over her like a guardian angel. It wasn't the full on resurrection she'd been hoping for when she first discovered the full scope of Thomas's capabilities, but it would do for now.

"Thank you for always being there brother dear, even when I didn't know it. I just wish I didn't have to say goodbye." Bonnie sniffed as she pulled away.

Zina suddenly piped up, "you won't have to forever Bonnie; all things have their time and when the time comes for you to pass on I can promise you I'll do everything in my power to ensure you end up safe in your brother's arms for eternity, in the metaphorical promised land. That said, with Appaneesty in your life there will come a time when you will need to choose between mortality or a perpetuated existence fighting by his side for the greater good of all in your Double-O. It is no secret that anyone Thomas Infinity takes under his wing goes on to accomplish wonders beyond imagining, and when you reach that kind of potential under his tutelage… you may not want to be able to die after a single human lifetime and you may ask for more time from him. Bear in mind, if he is to arrange for you to become a Zenith Omnidony or even a regular member of the Omnipotence Nexus like your counterpart; then you will never be able to rejoin Clemont in the afterlife and you will be trapped forever in an omnipotent existence that you can never truly be rid of. The ZOF has it's own set of afterlife systems, and no matter the Zenith Omnidony it will reclaim them in the end. So, make sure you weigh all of your options accordingly." The Death Goddess explained to her with a heavier undertone than she'd used previously since appearing to him, causing Bonnie to swallow audibly as Clement added his two cents worth.

"Whatever lifestyle you wind up choosing for yourself in the future Bonnie, be it inhuman or otherwise; just know that I fully support you no matter what." He reassured her, but while Bonnie appreciated his words she hoped she wouldn't have to make such a heavy decision anytime soon. The promise of a single lifetime with Thomas spent saving worlds and whatever else he did with his time was too tempting for her to pass up; thanks to him she could make a real difference not only in her world but an infinite number of other worlds as well. She didn't know if she could consider doing that forever but she definitely wanted to try her hand at it during her mortal life at the very least.

"Let's not jump the gun just yet you guys. We're still a-long-ways away before any such decisions need to be made." Thomas spoke up, summing up Bonnie's thoughts perfectly as she hugged Clement one last time and Serena shot him another small smile but did little else to say her goodbyes. Eureka piped up and felt compelled to say something to him as well since he was her brother's doppelganger.

"Listen, I know you're not my Clement and that you favor magic over science, but you guys already feel like kin to me and I still have my Clement, even if he is mortal. I'm sorry for your loss Bonnie and Serena, I know how that feels. I may not have lost my Clement, but Tom and I both lost our Serena." Bonnie admitted sadly, a wistful expression in her eyes as her counterpart, Clemont's, and Serena's hung their heads at this.

"I still can't believe my counterpart is gone to; I'm so sorry you guys. Bonnie and I were so wrapped up in our own losses that we never even considered yours." Serena whispered guiltily.

"Yeah, sorry about that guys," Bonnie added as Thomas and Bonnie both gave them understanding smiles.

"There's nothing for you guys to be sorry about." Thomas told them with a sincere smile. Zina smiled at this, touched by their mutual understanding of one another as Clement said his final goodbyes one last time and Eureka asked if it was alright for her to give him a hug.

He immediately said yes and she threw her arms around him despite the impossibility of being able to hold him; hugging him tight for a minute or two before she finally pulled away with a sad smile. Thomas had arranged for a spiritual summons for her before; giving her, Clement, and Grace the opportunity to say goodbye to Serena. Watching Serena harshly talk her mother down for hating Thomas's inability to keep her safe; it had been one of the only highlights of that day.

"Alright then… Zina was it? I think I'm ready to go back now." Clement said with a hint of finality, and Bonnie breathed a sigh of relief as a weight was lifted from her shoulders. She'd been carrying the burden of her losses for so long and now she finally felt as though she could put it behind her. Zina nodded and got ready to transport Clement back to his afterlife, but was suddenly interrupted.

"Wait!" Serena suddenly piped up in a spur of the moment of decision. She quickly walked over to Clement's spirit, removed his transparent glasses from his partially see-through face, and landed a passionate kiss on his, dead, frozen lips before placing his glasses back and pulling away from his blushing face. "I forgive you Clement." she finally said with a dazzling smile, and Clement looked like he would have died of happiness right there if he wasn't already dead.

"Now you can take him Zina." the dirty blonde beauty added as an afterthought while Zina nodded and Clement's form grew dimmer until he disappeared altogether; though Serena and Bonnie could swear they heard him expressing his eternal gratitude. Even after Clement disappeared and it occurred to them that they wouldn't see him again for a very long time, Serena and Bonnie were both just relieved to have gotten those precious last moments with him. Zina was still with them, while Eureka seemed lost in la-la land and Thomas was engaged in a conversation with the death goddess.

"Thanks for this Zina; I can't tell you how much I appreciate your leniency..." Tom whispered to her with affection and gratitude. Zina shrugged nonchalantly.

"Meh, it's no biggie; temporary spiritual summoning doesn't even register as a legit crime around here. It's a minor offense at the very most." She admitted with a teasing smirk.

"That said, I do seem to recall a certain someone resurrecting one Ash Ketchum earlier on; you wouldn't happen to know anything about that would you?" Zina said in jest, knowing that the matter of the upset Balance had been resolved but wanting to put Tom on the spot a little as he shifted a little uncomfortably.

"I sacrificed one of my lives in exchange for Ash's and restored the balance myself. My antithesis struck him down with an attack he intended to hit me with. So Ash, in his infinite wisdom… instinctively put himself between us. Clearly he didn't waste time wondering if I could survive a blast like that, and truth be told I'm not sure I could have given the very small gap between me and my anti self's respective power levels. I owed Ash a life debt, and despite knowing that I had finally gotten with Serena I still felt as though she had feelings for him and would never be able to let him go. I had confidence and self-worth issues in my previous life and didn't think someone as loyal to Ash as Serena could ever love me more than him. So yes, I brought him back, and I gave up my own life as the original Thomas Infinity in the process to keep the Balance intact. You can imagine Serena was furious at me for my reckless heroism and very quickly proceeded to set me straight. Even despite the fact that the ZOF operates as its own afterlife system, it would still be recognized as a restoration of the balance between life and death.

Afterwards, I was absorbed by the ZOF. But my legendary Mew whom I nicknamed Mafalda managed to reconstitute me, and it was during my time spent in the Zenith Omnidonae Force that I regained all my memories as Appaneesty 726. So when I reconstituted in the Omega Omnisphere; I knew I would have to regenerate once again to continue existing while also not upsetting the balance of nature." Thomas explained to her lengthily, smiling nostalgically at the fond memories. Clearly he didn't get the joke, and Zina burst out laughing. "I know, I know, I was just teasing. Man, you really take things literally don't you? You weren't quite this serious in your first life." She smirked.

"I'm a very different man now than I was then. Different than I was in my most previous life to this one as well, and that's probably for the best. Misty and I are back together now, or at least we managed to patch things up; best makeup sex I ever had." Tom whispered so quietly only a ZOF enhanced super hearing could have picked up on it, and Zina was practically squealing by this point.

"Oh my Lord! YES! Oh, I can't even tell you how happy I am for you guys; it's about damn time you both got over yourselves and pulled your heads out of your asses, no offense intended but seriously! Anybody with eyes can see you two were made for each other both literally and figuratively." Zina gushed fondly like a lovesick school girl.

"Unfortunately, it's not all good news Zina." Thomas whispered impossibly quiet once again, and Zina quirked an eyebrow.

"And I take it you haven't told anyone about this so called bad news; such as the fact that you're dying for starters," She murmured just as quietly. Thomas looked back to see Eureka happily communicating with Serena and Bonnie. The eerie quiet of the endless white fog around them did little to dampen their spirits. He turned his attention back to Zina.

"So you _do_ know about that, I'd imagine ever since I set foot in this realm _even_." Tom deduced. Zina nodded, choosing not to answer and instead indicating the Omni Nethersphere beyond them and behind her with an outstretched arm; giving him the Omni-Omega-Omnispherical sign to request some time alone with him so he could talk freely.

"If you guys wouldn't mind waiting here a bit longer, there are some things I'd like to discuss with Zina for a bit; I won't be a moment." Tom shouted back to Eureka, Serena, and Bonnie.

"What sort of things?" Eureka questioned him, eyebrows furrowed in obvious suspicion as Tom waved her off with a nonchalance he wasn't actually feeling.

"Just some concerns I've had about the circumstances surrounding Clement's death. Remember how I said someone resurrected the dead and he paid the price? Well, I just want to see if I can find any ectoplasmic traces of the soul that was resurrected and whom Clement's life was exchanged for. I figured I could use Zina's expertise in this. But I also figured you'd want to do something equally as important and a lot less tedious..." Tom replied half-truthfully, because in all honesty he was curious about who would have resurrected the dead in such an irresponsible or ignorant manner, but there were of course other things he wished to discuss with Zina in private; things he neglected to mention.

"Oh really, and what job is that?" Eureka asked him, slightly less suspicious now that Tom had given her a reason. In all honesty, she wasn't really that interested in searching for the traces of spiritual energy from some dead guy made to live again.

"To help Serena and Bonnie here better understand what we do and the complexities that make up the nature of an Omega Omnisphere Champion of Pokemon. Think you can do that for me Eureka?" Tom sent her the most dazzling smile he could muster. He could see her knees quaking and all her suspicions melting as she nodded slowly and gave him a radiant smile.

"Alrighty then, that's that; shall we then Zina?" Tom said once Eureka was fully occupied with walking their new companions through everything she could, and Zina shook her head at him sadly, understanding the necessity of the deceit to some degree but still finding it heart wrenching. She knew Tom was just trying to divert any concern people might have felt for him; that he didn't want anyone to waste time trying to fix something they couldn't stop from occurring.

"You should still tell them the truth even if you think it's best they don't know. Secrets have a cost Appaneesty… they're not for free. You know that old friend… better than most, so why the secrecy?" Zina asked him confusedly.

"It's a necessary evil, and while secrets have a cost; the truth does to. If I am to die, if this is to be the final end of my entire regeneration cycle; then I plan to go out with a bang bigger than any I've ever made before. I don't want my companions to waste precious time making repeated attempts at saving my life. This is my burden to bear and I don't want to have to try and wave off peoples' concerns for me when I can be doing so much more!

I don't know if I can complete the regeneration process this time Zina; the stronger one is with the ZOF the harder it is to reincarnate without being reabsorbed by the source of my powers first. And right now, I'm at the ZOF Prodigy Tier and at the limits of my regeneration cycle as well." Tom explained this to her with resignation, almost like he was at peace with the idea of dying and prepared for the worst, but also hoping for the best.

"Does it hurt… right now, are you in pain?" Zina couldn't help but ask, as Thomas nodded.

"As a Zenith Omnidony, my capacity for pain can be as limitless as my powers, but so is my ability to cope with my pain. That said, my entire body is undergoing a repeating cycle of cellular death and regeneration seemingly without end. And if I were a human or even a regular ON member, the level of pain I'm feeling right now would have killed me twenty times over by now. I need to ask you not to tell anyone of my condition just yet… I need some time to set some things in order in case I'm unable to beat this." Tom explained to her with naked honesty, making Zina cringe against her will.

"I'm so sorry. I'm just a ZOF Prodigy Tier Death Goddess. I don't think I can really properly relate to everything a fully-fledged ZOF Prodigy is… Nor can I really fathom what you must be going through right now. If you want, when you're done making your biggest splash yet. I can try and arrange for you and your bond mate to go to whatever sort of afterlife you both want together; surely being returned to the source of your powers can't be the only afterlife available to your kind.

With my help, I'm guessing you and Misty can choose any kind of afterlife you want; please let me help you Appaneesty, you'd find me to be a very helpful… _friend_. And I promise, your secret will be safe with me." She said with a playful wink, her suggestive intonation on the word friend not lost on Thomas as he shook his head with a rueful smile.

"I'm sorry Zina, but there is actually very little you could do. The only way Misty and I can avoid the ZOF as our one and only afterlife option is if we cease to be Zenith Omnidonae altogether, and at this point that is no longer an option. It's not like I can just appeal to the ZOF Masters either..." Tom told her resolutely, a determined look on his face as he found new resolve to make it through this and regenerate no matter what. He didn't want to die, not yet; especially not in the manner that his pantheon went about it.

He didn't want to cease to be, to completely lose his sense of self and become one with the collective consciousness of the entire, endless Zenith Omnidonae pantheon. In that event, the only way for him and Misty to come back was for another member of their race to reconstitute them. And by so doing they'd end up destroying themselves in the process by invoking a ZOFed Omnipotence Paradox. So all and all, the Balance between life and death applied even to the Zenith Omnidonae. Which only solidified the notion that the mysterious Entity known as AIB was controlling every aspect of creation and dampening the ZOF in order to contain the Entity that served as his Antithesis... the one called ZIB.

"Whoa, you really zoned out there Appaneesty; are you even listening to me?" Zina piped up suddenly, snapping Tom out of his reverie.

"Sorry, just reflecting on things. I have eternities worth of compounded experiences so I tend to get caught up in a myriad of different thoughts and memories. Infinite memories, different realities, and experiences are stuffed inside this old head of mine Zina; so I hope you'll understand when I kindly ask you if you could please repeat what you were saying earlier." Tom said, the two of them walking together through the endless white fog that mortals like Serena and Bonnie would have been unable to see through.

To beings with unconstrained and limitless perception of all realities in the Omni-Omega-Omnisphere, such as Tom; it was a simple matter for his surroundings to invent themselves before his eyes according to the most special place in his Omni-Totality sized heart. He wasn't the least bit surprised to see his old home from his first life; the Pennington House had always and would always feel more like home to him than anywhere else regardless of his regeneration cycle and infinitely diverse personalities.

"I was simply wishing you and Misty all the best and I guess I can't help but feel helpless. Since I'm unable to help you and your lover with your regeneration cycle. You've expended all of your lives haven't you, and you sent her away in order to protect her from sharing the same fate." Zina said in an all-knowing tone as Thomas's eyes grew downcast.

"I never stopped loving her." He admitted, knowing how Eureka felt about him and many other female Double-O Champions back home. But now that he and his ESIT Soul Mate… were back together and in love all over again; he knew he would never be able to love another as he loved her.

"It's not that I doubt my heart is big enough for more than one romantic relationship, and I know my bond mate was completely on board with the idea of me being in a non-exclusive romantic entanglement. As Serena 9 by Infinity I don't doubt she would've been. But now that she and I have finally gotten past our breakup and gotten back together. I just don't know if I can love Eureka and the other females in our relationship the same way anymore. It's not even the fear of disloyalty to my bond mate; it's quite the opposite actually… I'm afraid the level of closeness we share will prevent me from ever loving another truly as I do her. But it won't matter if I can't transcend the boundless limitations of my regeneration cycle.

I'm going to have to make a difficult decision in the coming days Zina; about whether I should cut and run like I've always done whenever things went to hell, or stick it through with Misty and all the others until it eventually kills me. I always knew deep down inside that I couldn't keep this up forever; that all of this was going to blow up in my face eventually, I mean it always did before in the end." Tom carried on unabated, his feelings pouring out from him before he could stop him as he felt his heart break at the thought of having to sever his ties to the likes of Myra the blue Mew, Serena McIntyre, Serena 9 by 3 who's death hit him particularly hard, and many others he was afraid to think of; he was going to die a painfully brutal death and had to consider whether he was taking them down with him.

Zina sighed, her expression never losing it optimism. "Look, I know it seems hopeless and like you're going to leave a lot of people behind when you eventually keel over, but I've seen you accomplish the impossible; things no other ZOF Prodigy has ever done or will ever do. If anyone can figure out a way to break the rules of regeneration amongst your people; I firmly believe it is you."

"You really think so?" Thomas asked her, not wanting to sound too hopeful and surprised by how naive he sounded, but she nodded firmly regardless.

"After everything you've accomplished; both good and bad, I _know_ you can Appaneesty! It may not be easy; some may even say it's completely impossible, but that's never stopped you before, and I don't believe it's going to stop you now. If you can find something worth living for, then I know that you will find a way; just don't give up when the going gets tough and don't be afraid to live. Trust me, after all the hell you and Misty have been through; you both deserve a win." Zina whispered sincerely as Thomas nodded with a grateful smile on his face; that was more or less exactly what he needed to hear, and the sheer irony that the Omni-Totality's Death Entity was telling him to not be afraid to live was not lost on him. He only hoped he would be able to find the strength to heed her advice and most importantly; make her words a reality.

"I appreciate that; probably more than you could ever know Zina." Thomas said to her with a smile, and the cute goth girl beamed at him.

"Of course, there are many people out there in the Omni-Totality who's lives you have forever touched Thomas; myself amongst them, and we haven't given up on you yet. As one of the oldest living ZOF Prodigies; you've made some pretty big tidal waves to the Omni-Totality's continuity." She chirped in response.

They both stopped talking as the ectoplasmic residue they both were looking for was now close by, and Thomas frowned as he recognized the spiritual signature of the Pokemon Pikachu. Ash's Pikachu to be exact, but which Ash's Pikachu was the question? "Jeez, I'm not sure even I can narrow that list down right now; maybe we can try and pinpoint where its soul was resurrected to or simply access the afterlife it was brought to fully and use that to determine the universe this Ash's Pikachu originated from and was brought back to life in..." Thomas suggested as Zina nodded. They quickly upped their scans and Thomas frowned as they were both blocked by the looming presence of a ZOF Prodigy; the threat of a meta-omnipotence paradox impending and ready to invalidate them both should they try and force the matter directly.

"So one of your kind _is_ responsible for this treachery, any idea which one it could be?" Zina hissed angrily as Thomas narrowed his eyes.

"I… don't know. I don't recognize the ZOF signature of this particular ZOF Prodigy, but… something about it seems hauntingly familiar. Gah, I have this nagging feeling at the back of my mind that I'd remember it in a flash if I were at 100 percent right now. But unfortunately the Zenith Omnidonae pantheon is much more diverse than I ever realized in my first life, and I'm not exactly in a fit state to go picking a fight with one of my own kind right now, especially if they're on my own level of power." Thomas gritted out frustratingly as Zina exhaled forcefully through her mouth in an effort to calm herself.

Someone was going to pay for this dearly; not just because they'd resurrected a specific version of Ash Ketchum's Pikachu for whatever reason, but because by so doing they damned an innocent soul to die in his place. Even if they couldn't force their way through to whatever universe this being inhabited Zina could sense the hostility and malevolent force this thing exuded almost as excessively as their powers, and it was making her want to reap the sorry bastard's ass like there was no tomorrow.

' _You're lying Thomas, you already know who it is, or at least very strongly suspect_.' Mafalda piped up suddenly in telepathy, and Thomas sent her and his other Pokemon a mental nod of ascent.

' _We should probably be ready for it in the coming days, but there is another dark presence in the ZOF present in this version of the Omega Omnisphere and its aura is full on omnimalevolent. This presence is troublesome to say the least, an agent of chaos but there are lights in the darkness of its aura. With it being indirectly responsible for Inverse Clement's death however, we will be back to settle a score, but not today. I think we have stuck around in the Omni Nethersphere long enough you guys_.' He said back through their psychic link before returning his focus to Zina.

"I think it best if we both found our way back to Eureka and the others; while she's strong my companion is also headstrong, reckless, easily bored, and a whole sleuth of other things that could get her and the others into a lot of trouble in this place." He said to the Death Goddess out loud who nodded before growing a sly smirk on her face.

"Before we do however, consider this a parting gift from me." She whispered seductively in his ear before the gorgeous girl stood up on her tip toes and captured his lips in a searing Kalosian kiss that made his blood boil and his higher cognitive functions all but shut down. It wasn't exactly what the humans would consider the most romantic place to make-out with an ultra-hot Deity of Death, but Thomas wasn't about to complain and matched Zina's rhythm; sliding his hands down to either side of her to squeeze her slim waist and admire her curves.

She broke off the kiss with a sudden gasp of pleasure in response to this, and grinned up at him like a cheeky Meowth or some other catlike Pokemon; evidently satisfied with his reaction to her unexpected but not unpleasant parting gift.

"Wow." He said simply, causing her to grin even wider.

"Glad you liked it, if ever you want to take this further with me all you need do is _cum_ back to the Omni Nethersphere; I'll make sure to treat you very, _very_ good down there. I mean, it's not like I see a whole lot of action simply because of what I am… but I have needs to Appaneesty, and you've always understood that." She said, pointing at his crotch suggestively as Thomas pitched a rather noticeable tent there, her lewd comment making him blush as red as a firetruck.

"Yeah, you're going to be just fine; if you were truly as dead as you thought you were going to be, your unmentionable body parts wouldn't be functioning at their usual level, which they most definitely are. I still remember when you were Captain Funnyman; back in one of your past lives, you big old perv, you. But hey, at least you were good for fucking then and even now, and you always understood that I had needs to; something I don't get a lot of given what I am. I hope you think about my offer to let me show you a good time; if you're dying the least you can do is have a little fun on the off chance that you don't make it. So, off you go then Captain Perv." She added with a snicker.

"Hey, I am what I is alright!" He replied with a mock glare, causing them both to laugh even louder.

"You seem more relaxed in this life than I've seen you in a long time. I'm glad my advice has helped you regarding your regeneration problem. If you're going to start messing around with some girls, I'd advise you get with your Bonnie as well if you think you can; I've seen the way she looks at you. She loves you very much Thomas and not as a big brother… not anymore..." She said the last part just to make sure he understood which sort of love she was referring to. Thomas couldn't help smiling with a great deal of affection.

"I know, and trust me she's made it very clear she's not a little girl anymore, and that she was willing to get with me as a consenting adult. Until now, I might have continued to try and reject her advances, even as every molecule in my body screamed at me to screw her brains out… pardon my language but even in my state of regeneration I'm as horny as ever. This is about more than sex though; I've grown attached to these Omega Omnispheres and their Pokemon champions both female and male alike, and I would die a thousand more deaths for each and every one of them if I could. I just hope I can find a way to break this limitation I've struck; because, despite all of the pain and misery, despite the darker aspects of my legacy... I've grown to love being what I am, and I'm not ready to throw in the old towel just yet." He declared resolutely, and Zina grinned before deciding to give him some more valuable advice.

"This is going to sound ironic, coming from someone like me. But on the off chance that this is truly the end for you my friend; you've got to make it count. Live, love, laugh, and have fun more than you've ever done before. Fall in love with and cherish every girl who is willing to put up with you even for a single moment; play video games, cross everything off your bucket list, and do everything you'd normally be too afraid or too polite to do normally so that when the time comes you can depart this life of yours with absolutely no regrets." Zina advised him sagely as Thomas nodded with a smile, his iridescent, multicolored eyes gleaming as he absentmindedly fingered his staff with the Supreme Evolution keystone on it.

"Zina, my gorgeous friend from the afterlife… I was thinking exactly the same thing." He replied with a maddening grin as they both started heading back from whence they were to where he left Eureka with his other two companions.

XXXXX

"So what's it like, traveling with Thomas the way you do?" Serena asked Eureka curiously as the they and Eureka's doppelganger Bonnie were sitting together on the formless white surface that was somehow neither cold nor warm.

"Oh, it's never a dull moment; it can be… terrifying, brilliant, and funny, sometimes all at the same time. I've seen some amazing things, traveling with Thomas completely redefines every aspect of going on a Pokemon journey; in ways too huge and too important to even imagine. He's opened my heart and mind in ways I didn't even know were possible, and he doesn't even seem to realize it." Eureka admitted as Bonnie and Serena exchanged a smile; clearly able to tell this girl was head over heels for the eccentric Zenith Omnidony.

"So… you have powers to then, what kinds of powers do you have, and which Pokemon do you use?" Bonnie asked her counterpart, deciding not to tease her counterpart for now as Eureka smiled.

"Non ZOFed omnipotence; I can do everything Thomas can do but only within the Omega Omnisphere's Omni-Dimensional tier, anything beyond that requires the ZOF and is beyond my power. As for what Pokemon I've captured; I've got Squishy and Dedenne just like you do, though my Squishy can go into his complete form without aid from the other Zygarde Core and even Mega Evolve and undergo Supreme Evolution. Thomas also caught me a Ditto for my tenth birthday way back when. Saying it'd be instrumental to my training to be a Double-O Champion since it can literally become anything even during the heat of battle. I also chose Greninja for my Kalos starter when I went to get my Pokemon and Trainer's license from Professor Sycamore, and I asked Thomas if he could make sure my Froakie got the Battle Bond ability like his so he and I could undergo the Bond Phenomena like he and Timbias did.

Of course he agreed, though my Greninja got a bit of a different Battle Bond from Thomas's; it's not as powerful for starters, since mine doesn't have the ZOF in his system, and it's not as versatile in terms of its move pool. Although it does get some really cool upgrades to its moves and stuff." Eureka finished her response with a breathy sigh, having adopted the habit of pretending to need to breathe as part of her training from Thomas and unable to completely discard the need to actually breathe air since she couldn't really imagine not needing to breathe. But still, her lung capacity was essentially limitless now and she could continue talking for hours or even days on end without needing to do a single intake of air.

"You really love Thomas don't you?" Serena asked her randomly, and Eureka blushed heavily, though she refused to deny it at this point.

"Yes, I think I do; given everything he's accomplished and all he's willing to do for others like us… does that really surprise you?" She asked them both as Serena and Bonnie shook their heads.

"No it doesn't, after what he did for us today I'll believe anything at this point. This all still feels like a dream, and while I still think he's nuts and don't feel as strongly for him as you obviously do; I guess a part of me can see the appeal, or at least the fascination on some level. Still, I'll be forever grateful for what he's done." Mirror Serena asked her as Bonnie nodded in agreement and Eureka laughed.

"You'd be amazed how many people get a sour first impression of him due to his eccentric nature, but he really is a great guy once you get to know him. It doesn't really help that he tends to get himself and the people he's impressing on into sticky situations, and it takes a while for him to worm his way into some people's hearts, but he eventually grows on even the most stubborn people; the ones most determined to detest or be irritated by him. He isn't perfect by any stretch of the imagination, and he has his flaws and his quirks just like everybody else, but he also possesses something... unquantifiable; a spark that inspires others to be better, and rallies even the mightiest of Zenith Omnidonae to his cause and what he fights for. I guess what I'm trying to say... is that he really does bring out the best in people, and I can't help wanting to give something back to him in return for all he's done. He deserves nothing less; especially after all the hell he's been through... he really deserves a win after all of the shit hitting the fan." Eureka admitted with unabashed reverence and adoration towards the object of her passionate speech.

"Seems to me like he's lucky to have you. And I hate to change the topic when you're obviously so in love, but I am curious about what our version of everything has to offer outside of our world?" Serena asked her curiously as Eureka shrugged.

"I don't know, I only just got here. And the first thing I did when I arrived on your earth was throw up all over the sidewalk of Lumiose Village. I can't remember the last time I felt that sick to be honest. And I couldn't believe that's what was waiting for me in the Inverted Omniverse. In my world Lumiose is a vast city, a grand metropolitan environment. The only thing it has in common with your world's equivalent is the giant Prism Tower in the heart of them." Eureka said in response.

"Yeah, why were you so sick upon arriving in our world anyways?" Bonnie asked her suddenly.

"Yeah, your world's Ash didn't have that problem and neither did Thomas for that matter?" Serena added.

"Well, Thomas has traveled and lived through so many different versions of everything that I'm not surprised he's become immune to that particular affliction. The reason I was affected and Ash was not was simply because I was a member of the Omnipotence Nexus when I first set foot here, and Ash was not. Thomas warned me that it can sometimes happen when an omnipotent being from a specific version of the Double-O manages to set foot in a new version of it altogether.

Each version of everything vibrates at a slightly different yet equally infinite frequency as compared to any other; basically each version has its own faction of the Omnipotence Nexus and those factions are fully attuned only to the version they're accustomed to. When I first set foot here, I was not only outside of my own faction of the ON, but my entire being started rejecting this one when I arrived and it's taken me this long just to realign and acclimate to this version. So while I can still call upon my omnipotent powers and everything here; the fact is I'm a foreigner to this faction of the ON, and this version of it and Totality knows it to.

Hence the violent reaction my body gave to my presence here; not only am I sick here but my presence in this world is making this place feel sick and it is rejecting me as much as I am it, like two magnets pushing away from one another. My omnipotence is almost incompatible with the atmospherics of this Double-O, I've spent my entire Godly existence adapting to my Totality but have not adapted to any other. Thomas meanwhile, can adapt to any of them almost instantaneously now, and I'm sure being a Zenith Omnidony helps as well." Eureka explained to them in a way she hoped they understood well enough, because she honestly didn't know how to explain it any better.

"So what's it like, how does this version of everything feel to you comparatively?" Serena asked her out of curiosity, and Eureka couldn't help but smile at the understanding Serena and Bonnie were showing her.

"I feel like a total outsider looking in, everything about this place feels just the slightest bit off as a whole; like how the color black seems less dark, or the taste of salt is more naturally salty. I haven't really had time to learn everything about this place but since my omni perception is back in full swing, I can honestly say this place is very different to the Omega Omnisphere I know. It's mostly a bunch of small differences, but on a really big scale; differences so small you wouldn't normally be able to tell what's different if you didn't already know what sort of Double-O you were accustomed to." Eureka described it as best she could, and if the stars that formed in Serena and Bonnie's eyes were any indication she felt she did a good job.

"Wow, that sounds so… alien and foreign, my Lord Arceus! Wait a minute, if you were forced to adapt to this Omega Omnisphere's ecology or whatever… how is it that our reality hasn't overwritten the one you know? How is it you even remember your version of everything at all?" Serena asked her with surprising intelligence as Bonnie couldn't repress a smirk. Oh yeah, Thomas sure knew how to pick his companions alright; these girls were asking all the right questions.

"Because my version of everything wasn't overwritten by yours… not now or ever. While the Zenith Omnidonae possess the power to overwrite entire Omega Omnispheres; most of them choose instead to simply create another version of it altogether and let the previous one be. I may have to adapt to this version of everything just to be able to exist here with my omnipotence intact, and maybe if I wasn't basically God I might be forced to fully align with this Double-O, but I am what I am and Thomas said we're basically Omega Omnisphere remnants here or something.

We're ghosts, anomalous members of this ON faction or something; I can't really say that I fully understand the terminology he uses. When I was first deified my powers customized themselves automatically to suit my needs and preferences; so let's just say almighty lexicon and absolute intellect were not two of the powers I wanted to experience full blast, not like him." Eureka said, smirking at them with a wink and a nod as both girls nodded in acceptance of this explanation.

They looked like they were about to ask some more questions, but were interrupted by the familiar voice of Thomas ringing out above the otherwise imperturbable silence of the Omni Nethersphere all around them.

"Hey you three, how'd you make out? Don't tell me you've unleashed an armada of the dead on the world of the living or anything like that, because that'd be quite the mess… all that ectoplasm everywhere, leaves a hell of a stink." Thomas greeted them with a teasing smirk etched on his maniacal features as all three women exchanged a glance that indicated they weren't saying a thing.

"Oh… you know, just some girl talk." Serena evasively answered him, while Bonnie snickered and Eureka added her own two cents worth.

"The girls and I were just bonding, you wouldn't be all that interested I'm sure." She teased with waggling eyebrows.

"Quite the contrary my dear compadre Eureka. I was a girl in at least two of my past lives. Oh man, could I ever dance the tarantella... ooh and I was a lesbian to and still completely attracted to girls. I was an OC in an alternate Star Wars universe and was head over heels for that universe's Ahsoka Tano, and I was a ZOF enhanced force wielder to boot." Tom reflected nostalgically, causing the three women to exchange flabbergasted expressions.

"Da fuck did you just say?" Eureka said plainly, and Serena and Bonnie figured that summed up the madman's insane statement. It wasn't every day that someone told you they had been a girl in a past life, and it certainly wasn't what they expected to hear from Thomas of all people; trying to picture him as a girl seemed positively absurd. It wasn't that he was exceedingly overly masculine or anything, and he did have a real way with women if Eureka was being honest. He was more in tune with his emotions and more emotionally intelligent than any man they ever knew, and he had the biggest heart she'd ever seen, but still; it was surprising to learn he had ever been a girl at some point.

"Oh, never you three mind now; you just get back to your girl talk once I take us all home." Tom told them mysteriously, massaging his temples absentmindedly and almost blanching when Eureka and even Serena and Bonnie stared at him in obvious concern.

"You alright there Thomas, you've seem kinda off lately; worse than usual actually?" Eureka asked him, and Thomas managed a smile as the endless white fog started thinning around them and the material Pokemon world was coming back into view. Zina was growing more ghostly and transparent, but she was smiling and waving, sending one last telepathic message to Thomas before she faded entirely.

' _Just make sure you tell them of your… condition before letting them get too close to you. I'm not sure even I would have forgiven you very easily if you allowed me to grow close to you without knowing there was every chance you could die_.' She whispered in his mind. Thomas nodded understandingly; knowing there was every chance, and not wanting to take any chances or tempt fate by taking anything or anyone for granted

' _Old friend, I'm hoping you're as eager as I am to see a whole new Omega Omnisphere, and go on a brand new Pokemon Journey_.' Timbias suddenly remarked excitedly, having lost none of his perpetual adventurousness in all the eternities they had lived, fought, and loved together. Tom grinned ferally in silent acquiescence; admitting he was indeed extremely eager and looked forward to establishing a Big Five and Double-O Championship Tournament in this Totality, but first he was curious about what sort of evil ON members and Zenith Omnidonae made this place their home. He knew his presence here as an Omega Omnisphere remnant had not gone unnoticed and that the strength of a ZOF Prodigy was manifested in the very party indirectly responsible for Clemont's death. Ironically, the ZOF Prodigy tier was the only God tier among his people that couldn't self-improve or get any stronger... so the omnipotence paradox did apply to them. He couldn't force the information he needed out of that resurrected Pikachu; anymore than the one behind that atrocity could force Thomas to do anything he didn't want to do. It made things more complicated than he would have liked. This particular ZOF Prodigy's presence and at least two others of the same tier were present here from what he could sense; though Thomas knew that was only because these particular presences allowed him to sense them.

"727 different versions of the Omega Omnisphere, each one vibrating at a slightly different infinite frequency from every other and feeling completely foreign and infinitely removed. I would've thought I'd be used to transcending the Omni-Dimensional Barrier by now but somehow it never gets old. The Omni-Totality never ceases to amaze." Thomas remarked aloud, both to his Pokemon and Eureka, Bonnie, and Serena, the former of whom couldn't help but smile at his childlike wonder. By the time they reappeared in the physical world and Lumiose Village was greeting them with all its quiet beauty; Thomas was prancing about excitedly and skipping along the side of the road like an overly hyperactive kid in a candy store… who was already on a sugar rush, caffeine high, and every other type of non-drug induced high upon setting foot in said store.

"Hey, wait up already!" Eureka called after him as she, Serena, and Bonnie all raced after him; previous experience telling them that Thomas would likely get caught up in something or other and end up losing track of time. By literally anybody's standards, Thomas was seriously ADHD. They finally caught up to him all the way back up Prism Tower where they all met together for the first time; the Lumiose Village Pokemon Gym a welcome presence as Thomas smirked at Eureka in a challenging but not unfriendly way.

"I seem to recall one of you three suggesting a battle between myself and Eureka to help educate you guys on how Double-O Champions of Pokemon battle… am I right Serena?" He said, casting a humorous glance at Serena who nodded mutely in response; the recent events of earlier today catching up to her as she stood in a contemplative silence. So much had already happened since they met Thomas and it had only been a few hours; now it was late in the evening and she was wondering the last time she had been so happy to have such a hectic day. Things had been so boring lately, and from what Eureka had said to them before; traveling with Thomas almost never got boring or dull. That was something she sorely needed in her life right now; she just hoped that she'd be able to deal with the imminent dangers Tom tended to attract just because of who and what he was.

"Yes I did, and I'd thank you not to back out on it now." She replied somewhat haughtily, a sly grin on her face as Thomas nodded and exchanged a knowing glance with Eureka as she sauntered out to greet him on the battlefield. Bonnie and Serena quickly took their seats in the stands, anticipation building to a crescendo as the battle to cap off the night's experiences was to take off momentarily.

"So, what are the rules this time Tom?" Eureka spoke lovingly to him; trying to put him off balance by turning her charm on him among other things.

She knew it would be a cold day in hell and a whole sleuth of other intrinsically impossible occurrences before she managed to beat her mentor in a ZOF charged Pokemon battle. There were only two trainers in the entire Omega Omnisphere who were talented enough to defeat Thomas and they were Serena 9 by Infinity, and Ash Infinity himself. Granted, Thomas won against Serena's ZOFed Omnipotent roster as often as he didn't, and only Ash Infinity remained completely undefeated by Thomas or anyone else both in the tournament and outside it.

"The rules of engagement are a 1 on 1 Pokemon battle; the battle will be over when one Pokemon on either side is unable to battle." Thomas told her simply as she nodded with a fond smile. Even though she knew she would be unlikely to beat Thomas; she still knew his typical battling style and entire roster inside and out. Thomas was a lot like Ash 9 by 6 in that he favored unimaginable speed and power to defeat his opponents, or as Thomas called them; fast sweepers, which was an apt name in her opinion. The difference is that Thomas tended to be even better at implementing that strategy than Ash 9 by 6; as he proved in the Double-O Championship Tournament when he beat that version of Ash's Myra the Blue Mew with his own Mew Mafalda. He was also particular fond of stat boosters, and it was notoriously hard for anyone to implement any of the usual counters to that against him... be it moves like Haze or Dragon Tail to force a switch out. Thomas had a counter or check to all of them, and had spent lifetimes mastering every aspect of his favored strategy.

Eureka smiled when she sensed her counterpart and Serena's anticipation growing in the back of her mind; the two of them getting antsy in their seats in the stand. "Alright then, you know who I'm going with don't you Tom?" She called across to him at the other side of the stadium. Thomas nodded in affirmation as he went over his potential choices to counteract Squishy. He'd usually just go with Timbias in situations like this; Timbias had landed him out of more sticky situations, and stickier situations than almost any of his other Pokemon.

Mafalda would be an ideal choice as well because her versatility alone was not to be denied; her usage of stat boosting moves like Nasty Plot and Swords Dance would make for great ZOF enhancement plus her ability to use Metronome and Transform to become any Pokemon with any move she wanted made her move pool essentially limitless. Hell, Aslan the Mewtwo could also use Metronome which would make his move pool just about as limitless even before Supreme Evolving, and given Thomas's ZOF enhanced Meta Luck Metronome would almost always turn into exactly the move they would need to get ahead in the battle.

Even though he could think an infinite number of thoughts in a Planck instant, and despite that feature not impeding on other people's time spent waiting for the battle to begin he knew he was way overthinking and overanalyzing his potential choice. ' _Ah fuck it, I'll just go with Xerneas in her Primal Form. I know Eureka is basically toying with me. She could make full use of the ZOF regardless of the form Squishy takes, and he has a lot of them. Not including his 10 percent, 50 percent, and complete forms; he can also achieve Mega Evolution in one form and three even more overpowered Supreme Evolutionary forms. She would possibly be furthest ahead just to Supreme Evolve Squishy right off the bat, and his Supreme X form would be absolutely devastating so Primal Xerneas' Status God ability would be most hopeful in this situation_.' Thomas said as he pulled out his Astral gem from beneath his shirt and his tweed jacket. The Pokemon Sun and Moon trainer theme started playing in the back of his infinitely perceptive mind.

Eureka grinned in anticipation, opting to let Thomas go first as he pointed the sharp end of the familiar looking diamond-like object towards the middle of the field and summoned forth his choice. "Xerneas, arise and conquer my old friend; undergo Primal Reversion and be wary of Supreme Zygarde X and his potential to show up." Thomas called out as Serena and Bonnie leaned forward in their seats with their eyes widened to the size of dinner plates. A firework's display of multicolored lights flashed from the straight white beam that shot from Thomas's Astral Gem as it hit the center of the battlefield dead on, and a massive orb of white and multicolored lights illuminated the gymnasium and began to take the shape of something else entirely. In what felt like an eternity, but was probably only a few minutes in actual non-relativistic time; Xerneas stood fully silhouetted in the pulsating light as the dazzling orb faded and the bringer of eternal life made incarnate stood poised for action.

Serena and Bonnie stared at the legendary behemoth in stunned awe, silence, and wonder; having encountered the sublime figure taking up nearly half of Bonnie's battling stadium before but never having believed it possible for any trainer to capture her. It went against every single fundamental law of the Pokemon universe; there were of course trainers who caught some of the less absurd legendaries such as the three legendary birds or the dogs… hell, some even managed to capture the likes of Tarrakion and the like, but nobody captured the really-godlike legends. Capturing something like a Rayquaza that could mega evolve or Kyurem or any of those types of legends just shouldn't have been feasible, and yet, here Thomas was showing them he had captured none other than Xerneas herself, and even cooler than that was her ability to undergo Primal Reversion like Groudon and Kyogre somehow.

The power this Xerneas radiated was staggering, Bonnie had never encountered its equal in any Pokemon she'd seen in her world; not even in the awing presence of the Arceus they had been blessed enough to see during the Hoopa incident… where Hoopa's unbound form wasn't confident enough to believe he was more powerful than his weaker counterpart, who had gone on a rampage throughout the city and summoned various legends to control. Bonnie remembered that day very clearly, how powerful Arceus's aura had felt to her. Yet even his seemingly godlike presence couldn't compare to that of the Xerneas that now stood before her; whose power easily and effortlessly surpassed the Xerneas of their Kalos Region as though it were nothing in comparison, and frankly it probably was.

"Whoa! That's same crazy energy!" Serena gasped aloud as Xerneas and Thomas greeted Bonnie's counterpart welcomingly, and Bonnie figured that about summed it all up.

"Wait a minute, if your Pokemon are as powerful as I'm sensing them to be; how are you planning to keep this battle from becoming a citywide or even planetwide catastrophe?!" Bonnie suddenly piped up, only once the shock of Thomas's choice in battling partners wore off enough for her to regain some level of coherence.

Thomas smiled mystically at that, and a telepathic voice sounded in both Bonnie and Serena's minds; one they both recognized as belonging to Xerneas. ' _Fear not my child, my partner has arranged for life support across your entire Omega Omnisphere; only my opponent will feel the full effects of my power, the rest of Totality shall remain unaffected in any way. It'll be like I'm not even there or affecting things on an ultimate scale_.' Xerneas explained to both girls gently, her comforting words and soothing tone of voice doing wonders for appeasing their concerns as Bonnie and Serena both nodded in acceptance and Thomas and Eureka snickered.

"Don't worry you guys, we've been at this sort of thing for a long time; we know full well just how much we could fuck up the infinite universes and realities if we didn't have these kinds of protections in place. We know what we're doing don't we Eureka?" Thomas called over to his student as she nodded and grinned eagerly.

"That we do my old friend, and speaking of old friends..." She suddenly stated as she reached into her satchel and pulled out none other than Squishy, the Zygarde core looking different from Bonnie's blue one and instead bearing the red markings of her Squishy's counterpart. Perhaps that was another thing that was mirrored in their universe as compared to Bonnie and Serena's.

"Squishy, how do you feel about getting some exercise and strengthening our bond even more than before?" She asked him cutely, tickling him under the chin as Squishy blobbed and bobbed in pleased acquiescence, proud to call himself the signature Pokemon of the little girl he'd befriended so many years ago. He'd had a grand old life, traveling through and protecting not only his world and Kalos Region but also a million alternatives to that world and Kalos Region.

He had been learning about the ZOF and the Double-O Champions right by Bonnie's side, and knew enough about it now that he was confident in his new abilities and Godlike strength. Thomas had given them an amazing gift by endowing them both with almighty powers, or in Squishy's case; ZOF enhanced versions of his own powers plus some fantastic new forms he never even knew he could have. A lot of people blamed a legendary Pokemon's lack of compliance with having a human trainer on their own damnable pride, but it was more than that; due to a legendary Pokemon's eternal longevity they always had to deal with the possibility of accepting a trainer they would one day lose to old age and decay.

Few of them wanted to go through the heartache of losing their human companion time and again, and while a great deal of them understood that the symbiotic relationship between humans and Pokemon made both stronger and acted as a synergetic component; most of them chose to lead solitary lives or lives with their own kind. What Thomas had done was give him and Bonnie, or Eureka he supposed… the opportunity to be together forever. To live, breathe, travel, and fight together for all of time; maybe even beyond the endless rebirth of Totality itself.

' _I'd be honored to do battle by your side Eureka_.' Squishy declared with adoration as Bonnie's entire demeanor glowed with her happiness and her face flushed cutely as the Zygarde Core hopped out to greet his opponent. He gulped slightly seeing the counterpart of the Xerneas he had known in his Pokemon world; slight nervousness filling him momentarily in the face of an opponent with such an overwhelming type advantage. His Core Enforcer attack in his complete form would be useless due to its typing and hers. His fifty percent form's ability of Aura Break would only slow her down at best, because even without Fairy Aura; just _one_ of those damn Geomancy attacks would still put her special abilities through the fucking roof.

What the hell was Arceus thinking, making her so Goddamn OP? Her regular form and Yveltal's were a horribly unbalanced duality and Xerneas clearly had the upper hand against her death bringing counterpart. At least in their Primal Forms they were more evened out, but Zygarde had to Mega Evolve just to keep up with them in those forms because even his Complete Form wouldn't cut it in most cases unless he was extremely fortunate in some way.

With their Primal Forms receiving ZOF enhancements on Thomas's Team they became too much for even most Mega Evolved Zygarde; which is why Supreme Evolution had been brought into the mix for those with less direct access to the ZOF. Thomas had been as hesitant to share the means to Supreme Evolution as he had been the Zenith Omnidonae Force, but at least Squishy had received his Supreme Evolutionary forms as well as the ability to apply the ZOF to all his other forms too.

Geomany and the like were just things he had to deal with in Xerneas's normal form; her ZOF enhanced Primal Form was easily a match for his Mega Evolved form and even on par with his Supreme Evolutionary forms if he was being honest. Despite his upgrades, he honestly didn't know if he could win this match but he'd do his damndest to beat her regardless of the odds stacked against him; he'd win for Bonnie/Eureka or he'd lose in a true blaze of glory and make her proud no matter what. He loved and adored his trainer to absolutely no end, and he would spend the rest of his omnipotent existence being there for her and traveling right by her side. Her Status God ability in her Primal Form allowed her to use any and all Status Moves and Status Z-Moves; she could even create entirely new ones on a whim. Creating upgraded variants of moves like Simple Beam or creating a Status Move that changed a Pokemon's ability to Contrary were just some of the things she could do, and Arceus knows what else she and Thomas had up their sleeves.

"Alright Squishy, let's start things off. Supreme Evolve into Supreme Zygarde X, and use Geomancy to enhance your special abilities and speed; as well as the ZOF in your system!" Eureka called out, putting all she had learned from Thomas about the ZOF into play as Squishy was engulfed in a massive sphere of green light that continually expanded like a sun turning into a hypergiant. As he materialized from the massive sphere, Eureka pressed a kiss to her Supreme Evolution keystone; the tactile contact all the stone needed for it to manifest the tendrils of energy that allowed Squishy to Supreme Evolve.

Serena and Bonnie were forced to shield their eyes as both Squishy and Tom's Xerneas were encapsulated in blinding spheres of light of endlessly varying colors; one of this Supreme Evolution and the other the unmistakable ancient powers of Primal Reversion. The Pokemon Sun and Moon trainer battle theme grew louder inside Thomas's mind as the battle started, and Supreme Zygarde X and Primal Xerneas appeared almost simultaneously on the battlefield; the two of them easily each as large as a small house, their colossal statures forcing Thomas to alter the interior dimensions of Inverse Bonnie's gym to suit the needs of the current combatants.

' _Gonna need to fix this gym up good and proper to suit UV battling mechanics if we're going to consider using it as a base of operations here in the Inverted Ultra-Verse_.' Thomas mused thoughtfully as the roof of the gym was bewitched to resemble the night sky of a planet with two moons that filled up half of it and one of them eclipsing with the sun. The gym became as vast as the planet it was modified to resemble, an entire outside world stuffed inside of it and breaking all the laws of physics along the way.

Bonnie and Serena's mouths were agape at this, their brains almost overloading from the visual input they were assaulted with yet unable to stop drinking it all in; they continued taking everything in with an almost uncontrollable thirst. But more impressively than the gym turning into the night sky of some alien world, was Xerneas and Zygarde in a form Bonnie had never seen before. There were Anime-style stars in her eyes as she got a good look at him in his Supreme X form; so very like his Complete Form yet so completely different.

He had the same color scheming and everything, but a completely different, almost serpentine body that wasn't bipedal. He resembled a cross between a colossal Seviper, Zygarde Complete Form, with the red and blue arms of the latter and the long, slender form of the former. He had a duo pair of massive red and black wings, capable of delivering devastating gale force blows with a single flutter not unlike Yveltal, and multicolored horns atop his reptilian head akin to Xerneas's antlers.

Xerneas's Primal Form looked every bit as breathtaking. Bonnie and Serena couldn't focus on her form for more than a few seconds at a time simply because of how overwhelming her life force and presence were. Her body was more muscular and proportionate to her rainbow colored, x-shaped antlers; like a Mudsdale from the Alola Region as compared to a scrawny Deerling. Her antlers grew to almost 50 percent larger than in her normal form. The antlers had more tendrils growing out from them, and her main color scheming shifted from blue with an iridescent sheen to a blue-white more prominently tinged with every other color in the whole visible spectrum than in her normal form.

"Activate your ability Xerneas, keep yourself from being subjugated by Zygarde's Race Against Time!" Thomas instructed instantly as both Pokemon finished transforming and Xerneas nodded her huge head and followed through. Both Serena and Bonnie wondered what ability that was, and were both startled when a telepathic voice sounded in their heads.

' _Race Against Time is one of the most overpowered abilities in the Double-O Championship competitions; it inflicts a perpetual Perish Song status on all opposing Pokemon currently on the battlefield... giving them precisely one Planck Instant before they faint. Most Pokemon are knocked out before the battle can even truly begin, and for that reason Zygarde's X Supreme Evolutionary Form is typically forbidden in tournament play… but since this is a free-for-all battle and Primal Xerneas's ability is Status God… well, status afflictions of all kinds are useless against her_!' the voice spoke to them, the angelic voice of a female that neither of them could identify.

' _Oh, excuse me for not introducing myself… my name is Mafalda, I'm Thomas's Mew; he probably is aware I'm talking you guys through this but keeps it at the back of his mind during the battle. It's nice to meet you guys_.' The girl claiming to be another mythical Pokemon said. Bonnie and Serena could only nod dumbly as they watched Squishy's doppelganger's ability be effectively negated. This was beyond anything either of them could have imagined; wrapping their heads around all of this was going to take some time.

"At this rate I'm wondering if we'll ever get used to this Serena!" Bonnie stated enquiringly, and Serena nodded in agreement. They watched as Squishy did exactly as Eureka said and started absorbing power from Arceus knows where; the entire battlefield around and beneath him lighting up in a rainbow flash of colors and light to indicate Geomancy as a red down washed over his enormous body three times… indicating the drastic increases to three of his stats.

"Alright Squishy, use Sludge Wave!" Eureka commanded as Bonnie gasped. She and her Squishy were still working out all the moves that a Zygarde could learn and they didn't think he could learn too many moves that would directly counter a Fairy-type, but Sludge Wave would definitely do the trick. It was one of the most powerful Poison-type moves. That said, it could've been because of Squishy's counterpart's Supremely Evolved form that he even had access to that move… but she still wanted to test out and see if her own Zygarde could in fact learn that move without any of the ridiculously overpowered enhancements these guys used.

Thomas smirked impishly as the whole gym floor was flooded with a river of infinitely toxic miasma; the kind he needed to keep from hurting the two lovely mortals bearing witness to their battles and from poisoning the ecology of the entire planet. ' _It's a good thing my Totality Preservation powers are fully in effect or this battle would devastate the entire planet_.' He thought internally, giving his battle command to his Xerneas via telepathy.

' _Use and manipulate the Status Move Reflect Type to become Fairy and Steel; then use Imprison to block all of Zygarde's moves_!' He instructed, knowing this to be an underhanded tactic but wanting to improve Eureka's education as a Double-O Champion as well as make her tactfully aware of the fact that not every UV worthy Pokemon Trainer was going to play nice. Better she learns such things from him in a practice battle than in an actual war where knowing and being prepared for such tactics could mean the difference between life and death. Even learning to commune her battle commands to her Pokemon without verbally speaking them… would be a crucial thing she would need to catch her opponents off guard.

It reminded him of the advantage of being able to do wordless magic; the non-verbal variety gave magic users in the Harry Potter world a split-second advantage they wouldn't normally have otherwise. An opponent couldn't properly counter such a move unless they knew exactly what types of spells or attacks the wizard/Pokemon trainer was using, and even then; they would be too busy trying to figure out what attack that was and how to counteract it to mutter the appropriate counter-curse in time.

Xerneas nodded and complied without hesitation, a metallic sheen covering her body momentarily to indicate the type change as a glowing red X appeared in front of Squishy at the same time. "What did you do?!" Bonnie shouted from the stands as the wave of sludge stopped flowing properly and dissipated entirely as Squishy's eyes widened, having not seen this coming and completely unable to use any of his moves. He was a sitting Ducklett and would have to rely on his powers outside of his Pokemon Move Pool to clinch the match.

"I had Xerneas use a customized version of Reflect-Type via her Status God ability to alter her typing to Steel and Fairy; though frankly there are so many ways I could've executed that technique… but I digress. So, with her being immune to Poison-type attacks; I then had her execute the move Imprison which as you know prevents Squishy from using any moves he and Xerneas have in common… and since Primal Xerneas's move pool as essentially as limitless as Mew's…" Thomas paused and let the rest of his comment hang in the air, knowing he need not say anymore as Serena and Bonnie exchanged a look of absolute fascination and wonder.

"You cheated!" Eureka pouted cutely, and Squishy nodded his colossal serpentine head in accord as Thomas grew a much more serious face than before.

"Eureka, ever since I took you under my wing I've done my very best to teach you everything I know… now you need to put everything you've learned into play. Think strategically beyond all measure… you cannot afford any mistakes or half-assed predictable strategies. Even in a practice duel such as this you need to be constantly analytical and calculating." Thomas instructed her as Eureka frowned at him in perplexity.

"What are you saying Tom, that I've done something wrong already?" She asked him, going over her first attack move in her own head. In her mind, Sludge Wave seemed the perfect opening move to start off with, especially after enhancing the ZOF in her Pokemon's system like Thomas seemed to have so much fun doing all the time. Geomancy to start off with stat enhancements, then a ridiculously strong Sludge Wave that would brutally damage her opponent's Xerneas… it had seemed a solid battling strategy for a quick victory. Yet Tom very quickly and efficiently rendered her Pokemon virtually powerless with just a couple of Status Moves; and her Steel-typing made damaging her even harder and would force Eureka to change her strategy.

That is assuming of course the Imprison effect ever lifted from her signature Pokemon. Most of Primal Xerneas's power came from her utter mastery of all Status Moves and her ability to manipulate and customize them however she desired; even create new ones with any OP effect on a whim. So maybe straight out offense was a bad call, maybe she should have opted to go for something like disabling Xerneas's Status Moves with Taunt and her Status God ability with a well-aimed Gastro Acid.

Thomas's smile grew as he responded to her query, evidently following her train of thoughts as he did so. "I'm saying that in any battle between any two Double-O Champions, every move you make is absolutely, infinitely crucial and any miscalculations, mistakes, or even remotely ineffectual strategies can and will cost you and your Pokemon the match. When the stakes are as high as the monsters we've faced back in our Ultra-Verse you and Squishy would likely be dead twenty times over by now!" Thomas rationalized to her as Serena and Bonnie both exchanged a nervous look. Despite how crazy this whole situation with Double-O Pokemon Champs was; Thomas took it all very seriously and was after Eureka to master every possible application of her and her Pokemon's powers and to make full use of them all in battle.

"I get it Tom, every move Squishy and I make has got to be on the dot!" Eureka sent him a dazzling smile as Tom nodded with an approving smile.

"Very good, I'll have Xerneas lift the Imprison Status from Squishy this one time, but that's your only freebie Eureka and only because this isn't the real deal. Just remember everything I've taught you and you'll do… _fantastic_." He said with emphasis on the last word, one of his favorite words actually.

Squishy sighed in relief as Xerneas glowed with the powers of her Status God ability and his Imprison status was effectively lifted. He and Eureka were not going to make such a foolish tactical error again, and if Tom was expecting either of them to pull their punches after that stunt he pulled he would be sadly disappointed.

"You guys ready to get serious now?!" Tom grinned at the pair of them as Eureka's eyes gleamed and Squishy got into a battle stance, his upper body rising off the ground and his neck expanding outward in the intimidating manner that a King Cobra used, only forty times bigger.

Xerneas lowered her head and pointed her antlers challengingly at her opponent like a stag during mating season, and Eureka and Bonnie both inhaled sharply when the two combatants vanished in a whirl of speed that should have been unfeasible for Pokemon their respective sizes. As the Omega Omnisphere's clock completely stopped relative to the two legends and they stepped their game up to a completely different level; their beyond invariant speeds caused their respective ZOF signatures to appear in front of them as they closed the gap between each other.

A blinding green infinity symbol with specks of red and blue appeared in front of Squishy as he was slithering at an unfathomable rate, and a blue-white one with faded tinges of every color materialized before Xerneas's charging form as both symbols shattered like glass into billions of pieces and were dispersed throughout this new Totality. They met in the middle of the battlefield just as the fragmented pieces of green, blue, and red flew away in slow-motion omni-directional projectiles, and their resulting collision shook the whole of reality at its very foundations…

XXXXX

While the battle between two supercharged behemoths was taking place in a universe seemingly unrelated to the mainstream UV, something else altogether was taking place in a distant alternate dimension. Three blurs of ludicrous speeds streaked across the endless vacuum of space as though the void itself were nothing more than another surface to run across. The speed at which the three figures ran would have put Speed Force Conduits and the Marvel Multiverse's fastest to shame alike; the invariant speed rendered variant by two of the three as the motion of Totality itself was perpetually suspended in space and time relative to them.

At the lead was the figure being chased, while the pursuing forces continued to chase him through the greater cosmos; their absolute God speeds allowing them to cover the distance of endless worlds, universes, and realities in less than a Planck Instant. The lead figure was the UV's most terrifying figure of myth and malice, hooded and cloaked in jet black that blended in with the expanse of outer space all around them; the only lights strong enough to illuminate him coming from the luminosity of the beings trailing behind him.

The grey infinity symbol that inspired terror in so many across the Inverted Ultra-Verse materialized before the figure and effectively shattered as he passed right through it, breaking the Invariant Speed Barrier itself as he did so. His pursuers began to fall behind as he implemented the ZOF, and he would have laughed maniacally if he hadn't been required to make soundwaves travel through the vacuum for him to do so. He wasn't interested in causing wanton destruction on a cosmic scale, not today at least; right now, he just wanted to lose his tailgaters before they became more of a nuisance and he was tempted to off them right then and there.

Why did they even bother struggling against him, he was a fully-fledged ZOF prodigy who had freed himself from all his constraints such as his previous endless capacity to love! He tapped into his omnimalevolent negative energies and the dark side of the ZOF itself to erase all the horrors of his past and the pain that he become too all-consuming for him to deal with anymore. He would no longer feel remorse for any of his actions no matter how despicable, and he could no longer love or feel emotional pain of any kind. It was the most freeing feeling he'd ever experienced in all his countless years, and he wouldn't allow any of these pathetic Double-O Champions to ' _bring him back to the light_ ' as they called it. The very idea was pitiable and laughable to him. Didn't they understand he was happiest just as he was? Obviously not, or they wouldn't pursue him as they did night and day, trying to stop him from conquering the Omega Omnisphere and creating a Totality void of suffering and sorrow.

Fuck upsetting some cosmic balance of power between symbiotic dualities; he was sick and tired of all the good in his Totality being offset by the negatives and having those negatives leave a bitter taste in his mouth every time he did a good day's work. He was sick of feeling like every time he did something right he did something wrong as well in the process, and above all he was sick of the fact that good and evil depended on one another for survival and love and loss went hand in hand. He was going to have to change that and eliminate either one or the other from all those dualities; he would stamp out everybody's capacity to feel anything but the freedom he now experienced joyously and without boundaries, rules, or constraints. The only sensible way to live in the Omega Omnisphere was without rules, morals, or codes; even if he had to bring them down to his level he'd show them all that his way was the only way that worked… the sooner they all learned that like he did the better off they'd be. He wasn't an omnimalevolent monster; he was just ahead of the curb.

He looked back behind him to see his pursuers, fully expecting them to have been eating his space dust by this point; only to curse when he saw the one person he hadn't wished to see… still on his Arceus damned tail. ' _She never learns, foolish, stupid, impossible girl_.' He gritted out through clenched teeth. His voice was soundless in the vacuum as a blue and white streak was matching his unfathomable pace and considering he'd endowed her with the ZOF at the Prodigy's level before he went dark, that wasn't all too surprising.

She looked as enticing and beautiful as ever; perpetually the same 19-year-old woman who had still been such a child inside when he first met her, or rather when he met her again technically. But since she wasn't his universe's Molly Hale nor he her Ash Ketchum; it was an inter-dimensional ESIT soul bond for the ages. His universe of course was long gone, lost during the days when he waged war with the Inverse Totality's Omninoir Infinity, and though they won that war in the end the price of victory had been way too high for his liking.

For a girl who he once professed to love romantically like no other, he could only see her as a naïve wench now, yet he was secretly impressed by her determination to reach him. Of all the Pokegirls in both his universe and countless others across the Ultra-Verse, he still didn't fully understand why the ESIT had chosen her to be his one and only beyond eternal soul mate… yet she had stepped up to the role and wore the mantle extremely well. If things had turned out differently than they had, he might have given the two of them a shot. As it was, she still stubbornly refused to believe the Ash Ketchum Infinity she knew was truly gone.

Her jaw was set in pure determination as she continued this pointless chase across the never-ending stars, nebulae, and the occasional ultra-massive singularity or two; her Zenith Omnidonae powers a match for his own… yet she was quite misfortunate to be inexperienced at using them. With him unable to train her she was caught in the same old song and dance routine of trying to come after him without any actual competency or training under her belt. Ash scoffed with dark amusement under his hood, his once golden eyes shining bright red like lasers from under his mask of evil and his physical features perfectly concealed. Yet despite him tapping into the full force of his negative and evil energies; she could detect him by reading his ZOF signature which she somehow recognized every damn time no matter what he did to alter it beyond recognition.

She always found him, chased him across dimensions, and tried to reason with him. But he was always one step ahead, always managing to slip away from her when she let her guard down. It was becoming kind of a fun game in his opinion, like cat and mouse except she was another cat. She never actually struck any sort of blow against him, despite the fact that he didn't pull any of his own punches; she just stood there and took it while trying to reason with him. Didn't the stupid bitch know when to quit, she needed to accept that the Ash Infinity she knew and loved was gone, and that's if he was ever there at all.

He did a quick swerve to the side, attempting to lose her amidst the harsh environment of a galaxy cluster and running straight into the mouth of the ultra-massive black hole that acted as that galaxy's gravitational center. His heart raced with the adrenaline rush that only the feeling of invincibility could distill in a person. As he approached the source of infinite gravitational force, he realized that ZOF-enhanced Omnipotence was his ultimate drug; the means to making his every darkest desire possible with but the briefest of thoughts. It was an experience like no other, who needed love when he had the power to do anything he wanted? A massive vortex of cosmic and primordial star light greeted his all-seeing eyes as the crushing mass of the singularity didn't slow him down in the slightest and he popped out in a completely different universe; the inner and outer event horizons of the collapsed stars providing an unstable Einstein Rosen Bridge that would have crushed any mortal beings into atoms and prevented the escape of any subluminal particles. But the Inverted Ash Ketchum Infinity was far beyond mortal and moving faster than speed itself, faster than the invariant motion of the Omega Omnisphere at its current rate of expansion. So, the Black Hole could only suck at sucking him in and spit him out on the other side in a completely alternate reality. Hopefully that sudden change of course was enough for him to lose his latest ex-girlfriend.

To his disappointment however, she was still on his hide and so he kicked it up a notch, his speed increasing further and further beyond its infinite limits as he left the confines of the Inverted UV and orbited it much faster than the laws of physics and gravity likely permitted. He cursed when he saw her still on his ass, and knew he wouldn't be able to shake her off anymore; he'd have to confront her head-on this time around, and knowing she would try and make him go back to the man he was, this was not a confrontation he was looking forward to. He'd lost his other pursuer way back, most like 9 by Infinity trying to keep up with him and his former protégé; it was a shame she hadn't been infused with the Zenith Omnidonae Force by him instead, it would have been a lot more fun than dealing with Molly's stupid refusal to give up on him.

Inverse 9 by Infinity and the other Double-O Champions he'd created understood, even that feeble minded pacifistic Ash 9 by 6, his morally sound and unambiguous counterpart… was beginning to lose hope in their former leader. Their hatred of him was exactly what he needed them to feel, the sooner they started to embrace the darkness; the sooner the empty promises of love and happiness made by the light could be stamped out. Love was a lie, promises of forever were nothing but words whispered into the wind, and he was so done with all of it. At first, he had been shocked beyond belief by how much easier it was to hate and how much cleaner as well. When he first went fully dark, he hadn't expected it to feel like the weight of the Omega Omnispheres had been taken off his shoulders… now they were his bitch to do with as he pleased. Once he stamped out the remaining lights in this Ultra-Verse and only the darkness remained… he'd move onto the next Double-O over, and the next one, and so on; until no lights remained in the Omni-Totality in its entirety.

Stopping suddenly as Molly Hale Infinity continued her relentless pursuit of him; Inverse Ash Infinity had to repress a groan of displeasure. He had stupidly decided that the girl he once loved would be safer if she had all his powers as well as her Pokemon; if he had known she was going to be more irritating than fun to play around with in his current state of being, well… he simply would have chosen Serena 9 by Infinity. The fact that he didn't choose her when she'd been his most promising student aside from her counterpart 9 by 3, still baffled him. The ZOF Masters knew there were more promising individuals, so why this girl who bored him so? He supposed he could have blamed his lack of foresight into what he would become, but that only went so far. He was actually tempted to transfer his powers to 9 by Infinity and his own 1 Millionth counterpart, the brutal and merciless tactician would promise to be the most fun he'd had in forever. But for now, he was curious to see if he could get Molly's rock hard resolve to crack a little. Breaking her spirit would be the most fun he's ever had or would ever have he reckoned.

Standing atop the vacuum of space was an easy thing for him, though the girl now standing before him with her whole being exuding desperation and determination all at once… was making it look a lot harder than he was. Experience trumps all it seemed, and he awaited the inevitable as she tried to communicate her thoughts to him; evidently smart enough to know that normally sound couldn't travel in the vacuum of space. So, she talked to him the only other way she knew how, through telepathy.

' _Ash, this has got to stop! I can't keep honoring the man you once were if you're so hell bent on keeping to this monster you've become! Please, come back to us all… our team is our family; you taught us that Ash. We have a shared suffering, and you don't have to avoid your own feelings of loss and pain. You can confront them and win, and we can help as well. Ash please, I've already given you too many chances but I… I can't, I won't let you hurt anyone else_.' She whispered to him in that hauntingly angelic voice, the same one that spoke of a character who was naïve, wise beyond her years, and boundlessly brilliant all the same time. He had never found anything more attractive than a woman with brains, who he could have a legit argument with without pesky petty feelings becoming a problem.

' _I think it's a little late to be reading me the redemption act Hale! In case you haven't noticed, I've slaughtered entire worlds and destroyed countless lights in the darkness already. Do you really think there is anymore redemption for what I did then there was for Omninoir when we offed him?_ ' Ash said back to her without any of the emotions she had underlying her tone, the fact that she could still love him after all the atrocities he had committed confused and baffled him in his new state of mind.

' _It's never too late for that Ash_!' Molly exclaimed insistently, her caramel colored hair bobbing and bouncing in defiance of the laws of astrophysics. Her sky-blue eyes were swimming with all the hurtful emotions Ash had sought to get rid of on the grandest scale, her blue/white one-piece shirt and skirt, and her white over the knee socks doing little to conceal the absolute beauty who stood underneath those clothes. She still had that ridiculous blue ribbon in her hair, making her look like the perfect nexus point of the adult Molly who had battled Brock and the teenage one who fought Misty, during the events of the canonical third Pokemon Movie.

She had the shapeliness, curves, and mature beauty of the adult version combined with the more immature getup of the teenage one. That girl had been pure toxin, the way she had such absolute power over him without even trying or even wanting to abuse that power; the way she had him wrapped around her finger right from the get go when she didn't even know it. Meeting her that day and saving her from those Team Skull thugs in a nameless Alola Region alleyway had been equal parts the best and worst day of his life; like the ESIT was promising him eternal happiness to make up for its failure to do so in the past. Well he wasn't about to go hanging off that particular lure; never again. He would never be baited, reeled in, and made to live without the welcoming depths of the lake for even a second… only to be thrown back in when he'd been out of the water for too long and could no longer swim properly. He would never go back to that excruciating mix of pain and pleasure, not when the darkness was such a better alternative.

' _What would you know about these things child? You're a gnat next to my violent raging storm, a single light alone in the perpetual darkness. What can you possibly hope to comprehend about my situation, and why my transformation was necessary. If you had truly understood what I lost, you'd be right there with me_!' he told her in a cold, calculating, cruel voice dripping with malice, yet not with contempt or fury. Such emotions required passion which he was lacking in most things these days. Molly looked to be on the verge of tears, but her telepathic voice was quite steady.

' _You're right, I don't understand all you've lost, and after only knowing and loving you for a few centuries… how could I possibly understand? I haven't gained enough life experience to truly understand the depths of your suffering, loss, pain, and tragedy. But there is one thing I do get and that's wanting to erase all the bad stuff that's happening across all the worlds. You wish to recreate our existence into one that is void of suffering and sorrow, and while that is essentially playing God I can understand you're just tired of all the hurting and everything._

 _You want it all to stop, and you think the only way to do that now is for everyone to stop caring, stop feeling emotions that make them fall head over heels, or allow them to bond to their families and friends. I would support you in this endeavor Ash, if only it wasn't for that one small feature; because I won't sacrifice my ability to love you for anything… even if you've forgotten our bond for the time being. I refuse to go to such lengths in order to erase my feelings of pain. To me, losing that ability to love you or anybody else… is worse than the alternative; because what's the point? It may be easier to hate, and no one would blame you for joining the dark side after everything you've been through. But you've gotta come back to us Ash and face the music… simply erasing your feelings isn't going to make them go away; it'll simply inflict it upon all the people and Pokemon you've bonded with through your entire life_.' She replied to him in a passionate, heartfelt speech as the hooded figure of malice chortled sadistically.

' _Well that was a load of demon dung; do you honestly think I would want to go back even if the brighter side of things wasn't as deceitful as I knew it was… I can't ever go back Molly… I won't_!' he declared solemnly, his telepathic voice a hateful symphony of every note of rage, anger, aggression, and malice both imaginable by sentients and unimaginable alike. Molly allowed herself one last heartbroken look at the broken God of a man she once loved more than anything or anyone; the very same man who'd become a monster worse than Omninoir Infinity had ever been. She may not have been around during the times of that war but she knew if she couldn't get her favorite version of Ash Ketchum back… then Omninoir Infinity will have gotten the last laugh in the end.

' _Then I'm sorry Ash, but you leave me no choice! I'm gonna have to fight you, and since I'm the only one who really can at this point_ …' She let the rest of her statement hang as a blur of multicolored lightning materialized beside them and the leader of the Double-O Champions returned to Molly's side… resting her hateful gaze on the man she'd once called a mentor, comrade, friend, and maybe something more if he had ever felt the same way she did.

' _There are no words Ash Ketchum Infinity! Molly may still believe in you but I lost faith a while back! I may not have you guy's ZOFed omnipotence but this ends now Ash! Mark my words, you will see no mercy from me; too many people's lives are riding on this, and personal feelings aside no one man is worth the lives of everyone in the Omega Omnisphere_!' She stated objectively, though with a hint of anger and vengeance lacing her tone with a drip of acid. Inverse Ash Infinity grinned maliciously beneath his hood, wondering whether to settle this with them through a trainer-on-trainer fight or with their Pokemon. There were so many ways he could dispatch them both. And now that Serena 9 by Infinity had finally caught up to them, this was finally starting to get a little less boring.

He cracked an Omega Omnisphere sized pair of knuckles that he conjured from out of thin air, reckoning this was gonna be fun and getting ready to throw down with two of his greatest former students when something else came to his attention so suddenly he almost swore he could feel a sense of vertigo as he responded to it. He watched as Molly spun around to and fro as though trying to pinpoint something, smiling with pride against his omnimalevolent will.

' _You sense it too then I take it_.' He stated with cool detachment and nonchalance, as Serena 9 by Infinity stared at her comrade in confusion.

' _What is that? I've never felt a ZOF signature like that before, at least not in this Omega Omnisphere_.' Molly said as she tried remembering where and when she might have felt such a presence before, but with such a vast sphere of control to scope out it would take her a while.

' _What are you playing at Ash_?' Serena demanded hostilely, obviously not understanding what was going on as Inverse Ash Infinity held up his hands in mock surrender; the satisfaction he got out of her assuming he was behind everything that went on around here too immeasurable for him to express with words alone. Clearly she believed he could control everything and had every possible advantage over them; she had already lost hope of returning him to the light, yet still believed she could beat him rather than join him in the end. He knew that would soon change, but the fact that she still had so much faith in his own capabilities did him a world of good.

' _My hands are actually clean in this Rena… for once. I'd imagine I've felt that ZOF signature at least somewhere at some point in one of the Omega Omnispheres in the past or future; perhaps he'll succeed where you have failed Molly. Though I am rather disappointed in your continued naivety, I am glad you're learning to hone your Zenith Omnidony intuition and senses well enough on your own! But every ZOF prodigy needs one of their own to show them the ropes; even I do I reckon… there's only so much one can learn on their own and everybody needs a teacher Molly. Go and find yourselves this new ZOF prodigy who just happened to project his presence for all to sense, and once you determine whether he's friend or foe, perhaps he can teach you what I could not._

 _A failed apprentice is the byproduct of a failed master, and I've failed in my efforts to teach you the facts of life Hale. Because unless you come at me without moral constraints or boundaries of any kind; I'll forever and always be THE ONE THING IN ALL THE OMEGA OMNISPHERES… YOU PATHETIC FOOLS CANNOT STOP!_ ' Inverse Ash Infinity roared at them with beyond absolute power. The fabric of reality tightened and convulsed in response to his vile, malevolent passion as he vanished in a distortion in the Omni-Dimensional Barrier of his own creation, which he then patched up from the other side of wherever and whenever he currently was; making it much more difficult to find him now that he was effectively concealing his ZOF signature entirely.

"Well that was a fucking bust; once again, he managed to get away from us because someone isn't bringing her A-Game!" Serena 9 by Infinity hissed angrily as she turned her attention to Molly, who was staring all around her in a daze and appeared to not have heard the ranting honey blonde trainer at all.

"Hey, are you even listening to me Molly?! This is serious, I know you said you'd never give up on him until the end and that'd you always put your loved ones before everything. But Molly, you're prioritizing Ash's wellbeing above that of the wellbeing of everyone else in Totality, and if the ZOF is to be believed in… then infinite other Totalities as well. I know you love him, but you're going to have to do whatever it takes to save reality; even if it means saving it from him by any means necessary." Serena's voice and expression softened to one of purest sympathy as she continued to try and reach through to her fellow pupil. The honey blonde leader of the Double-O Champions understood completely how Molly felt; she had loved that Man of Infinities so completely that it killed her a little inside each day she saw him like this. But that Man/God had become _the_ Monster to end all monsters. He was always going to be one step ahead of them, and loathe though she was to admit it Molly was the only one amongst them with any real chance of stopping him. Unfortunately, she never would at this rate, unless she was willing to put her foolish devotion to their ex-leader to bed and do what people like them were born to do; protect the Pokemon portion of the UV and by extension the rest of the Omega Omnisphere by containing threats like what Ash Infinity constituted to them all.

"Except that I'm not the only one anymore." Molly stated suddenly, making Serena realize she might have projected her thoughts and opinions on Hale's singularly unique ability to stop Ash louder than she intended.

"Didn't you hear what Ash said, we've got another Zenith Omnidony in our version of the Ultra-Verse, and from what I'm sensing he's a very, very old, ancient, and wise ZOF prodigy. He could be the beacon of hope we need to shine a light on Ash, to illuminate and expunge the darkness from his system. He could maybe even teach me how to get a handle on my powers well enough so that I can bring Ash back by my own hand." Molly declared resolutely, feeling the faint stirrings of true hope inside her heart for the first time in centuries. She'd been slowly losing heart every time they caught Ash's whereabouts in some corner of the Multiverse, only to chase him through galaxies and lose him all over again. He'd resurface eventually, in some distant time or place; but for now, Molly had a new mission and possibly a new way get through to him somehow.

Serena 9 by Infinity sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose, obviously exasperated by the youth. "Molly, we need to get back to headquarters and regroup; then we can decide on how to approach this new ZOF prodigy. I don't know what it is you and Ash sensed just moments ago, but it could be dangerous to enter a new environment and encounter new people and we can't afford to go in blind anymore; not during these dark times and not without Ash to ensure we get back out safely. Unless you can personally guarantee our safety, I can't condone the pair of us just popping off to wherever this wildcard happens to be. And how is it you just happened to sense this new person right here and now; how can you be certain Ash isn't messing around with you and your senses?" Serena said, opting to point out all the things that were wrong with Molly's idea to just approach some stranger who could've been hostile.

"Why can't you guys ever just trust me huh?! I'm not exactly easy to deceive Serena and this ZOF signature is only sensible now because he lifted whatever veil or curtain that was concealing him before. Case in point, he knows we're in trouble and wants to help; I'm also sensing that he hasn't tapped into his negative energies like Ash has, and even though he has them we all do so I'm willing to give this person a chance." Molly stubbornly insisted, obviously knowing more than Serena did but unwilling to expand on it since she also knew that Serena was skeptical about any new person, place, or thing she couldn't read inside or out. She'd never had much trust for Zenith Omnidonae, or anything else she couldn't assume absolute power and control over if they became too dangerous and unstable. It had been a massive blow to her rock-hard pride to acknowledge that Molly was the only one adequately equipped to stop their current antithesis; now that she learned there was another element she couldn't hope to control or beat, it was like rubbing salt in the wound.

Molly could understand her frustration on some level, she was having the same exact problem with Ash; not the controlling him part necessarily, but just talking him into coming back to her. Besides, it's not like she could control him anymore than her fellow champions could; not right now, not ever, but she also knew she was skating on thin ice with these people and the only reason they kept her love-struck ass around was because she was their only viable weapon against a Prodigious Zenith Omnidony.

This war was beginning to change all of them at the very core, not only because Ash was an impossibly strong enemy they couldn't hope to defeat without her; but because he was Ash motherfucking IB, their leader and the reason their entire pantheon existed in the first place. He was their everything; their heart, soul, and everything beyond, between, within, and everything else. He was the original Double-O Champion, the pioneer of level infinity Pokemon Mastery; without that foundational support, the whole pantheon would face eventually collapse into irreparable disrepair. He had been their shining beacon of hope for so long and when he had gone dark it had dealt a heavier blow to some of them than anything that Omninoir could've done, but Molly knew it was only because he lost hope in what they were doing.

She knew that it was up to her to be that inextinguishable beacon in his stead, because sure as hell no one else was in a fit state to do it. She didn't want to see the very same family she'd grown to love, that the one she loved most had built; be torn apart by this or anything else. They were the only remainders of Ash Infinity's legacy; the last signs that he'd ever been or done anything good in this UV. Molly couldn't let everything he'd built crumble into dust and atoms, even if she had to protect his own creation from its creator; she owed Ash that much at least.

"Come on, we should probably go and meet this new Zenith Omnidony while we still have the chance. Or if you'd rather, I can go it alone if you're too much of a coward." Molly enchantingly stated, knowing there was little Serena could do to stop her from going and knowing she couldn't change her mind either. Sighing in pure defeat, Serena opted to teleport to HQ and let Molly handle this alone.

"Fine then, consider this your first solo mission dream-girl; find this anomalous Zenith Omnidony and bring him in for questioning by me. If you do end up dying on this mission Molly Hale, your teammates and the Ultra-Verse shall thank you for your service in advance." Serena waved her off with a fond smile as Molly gave a whoop of pure joy, feeling the most excitement she'd had in decades.

She knew that Molly was putting far too much faith in this random stranger, but if it gave her what she needed to fight their common enemy another day then so be it. She wanted to believe so badly that Ash could somehow return to them as well, yet Molly seemed to be the only one among them with the capacity to believe in that impossibility. Maybe it was that Zenith Omnidony mentality of hers or her unbreakable bond with Ash, or maybe her capacity for hope was just more limitless than theirs was. Whatever the reason, Serena couldn't help feeling somewhat hopeful that she'd prove them all wrong; just being around her made it seem like bringing Ash back to the light was not such an insurmountable feat after all. Despite letting Molly have this solo mission, Serena opted to keep an eye on her just in case, and sent a silent prayer to the highest being in the Omega Omnisphere's ultimate pantheon. ' _Zeneptron 500, keep that girl safe and guide her on her journey_.'

Molly turned in the direction that Serena assumed the ' _bat signal_ ' of sorts was coming from, and vanished in another burst of unfathomable speed. Shaking her head at Molly's display, Serena contacted HQ. ' _1 Million, ready our interrogation room for a new and unexpected party. I want to know why this new Zenith Omnidony hasn't shown himself until now, and I want to know where and when he came from_.' Serena instructed Ash 1 Million as she patiently awaited his reply.

' _Damn, not another one; honestly Serena, where do these guys even come from?! Zeneptron 500 help us all if this new guy is even half as hostile as old Ass Ketchup is these days_.' 1 Million responded gruffly before hastening to carry out Serena's commands, and she couldn't help agreeing as the telepathic live feed between them went dead. It was only then, when she knew no one was watching, that she gave one last longing look at the spot in space Ash Infinity recently occupied before vanishing as well.


	2. Chapter Two: A ZOF-fated Meeting

_Disclaimer: I don't own anything, nor do I make any profit off this whatsoever. I only own AU plot lines, Self-Inserts, and OC's. Everything else is the property of its respective owners._

_Description: Years after the events concerning her crybaby Ash's doppelganger in Reflection Cave and after her victory in the Kalos League; Mirror Serena is in for a surprise when a familiar and fascinating stranger quite literally drops in on her at the most inopportune time. And what is it he keeps babbling on about an 'Inverse Omega Omnisphere?'_

Chapter Two: A ZOF-fated Meeting

"My God... such strength!" Mirror Serena gasped in purest awe and more than a little bit of fear, as she and her universe's Bonnie gripped their seats in the spectator stands for dear life. The Stadium below them had very quickly become enshrouded by an endless vortex of sovereign energy. The entire Lumiose Village Pokemon Gym was lit up by kaleidoscopic colors and a nuclear display of fireworks as Thomas and Eureka's Legendary entities collided right in its epicenter. Their maximally overcharged clash stirred up a mushroom cloud of dirt, dust, and other debris from the marred landscape of the gym's sandy battling terrain. Clearly, even with the protections in place to ensure their entire planet wasn't shaken apart, damage on some level was inevitable; no matter how small.

Before today, neither of the girls had believed any of this to be remotely possible. But it seemed their new friends _were_ the impossible. Even Bonnie's own Squishy was blown away by the strength his… _Extra-Omniversal_ counterpart… ( **They were still coming to terms with such an existence. Hell, they never had a concept of a** _ **single**_ **Omega Omnisphere before they met Thomas; let alone multiple versions of it** ) wielded. These people's Pokemon were more than just Legendary Entities. They were supreme forces of nature. Yet, despite their respective powers; neither seemed to gain any ground over the other. Perhaps the existence of more than one ZOF Prodigy as Thomas called them created some sort of paradox; one which would prevent any of them from every finding true supremacy.

Despite the apparently equal strength between the Supremely evolved Squishy and Primal Xerneas however, if they could have looked just a little closer... beyond the maelstrom of overwhelming life force and energy erupting from the two colliding Pokemon; they would have seen Thomas raising his right hand and pressing his left-hand's index finger to a rainbow-colored crystal attached to a ring not unlike a Mega Bracelet. If they had been able to see the object in question, which happened to be Thomas's own personal creation and an all-inclusive Z-Crystal known as Omnium Z; they would have immediately recognized it to be something other than a Mega Stone or the Supreme Evolution Key Stone that Thomas had shown them earlier on that staff of his.

Even above the soul-shaking, otherworldly sounds that every collision of the two Legendary Pokemon generated, they could still somehow hear Thomas's voice as he instructed his Pokemon. "Xerneas, use the power of my Omnium Z to augment your ZOF Energy using Z-Geomancy; draw power unimaginable from the ZOF itself and rain absolute hell on our enemies!" He instructed as though he were inciting a chant that would sick whatever Deities he believed in on whoever stood in his way at that moment. Bonnie and Serena both shuddered as the force of their collision reached a fever pitch and became unbearable. They wanted nothing more than to look away but their eyes remained glued to the battlefield regardless of how their eyes hurt.

Eureka and Squishy gasped at the unexpected, last minute command. It was all they could do to stalemate with Thomas and Xerneas, and now he was springing another of his hidden Omnium Z and Z-Ring's on her. Obviously, the last one's destruction during the final war with Zeneptron 30 didn't take, and now Thomas had all he needed to ensure her defeat.

Z-Geomancy was arguably one of the strongest ZOF enhancing moves there was outside of Z-Belly Drum or even more insane combinations such as the Omnifarious Ditto/Anger Point Krookodile/Self-Inflicted critical hit Stone Edge combination that Thomas became famous for. Luckily, he hadn't instructed his Ditto or Mafalda to use such combinations on her before, but she had seen some of the people he had used them on. Namely Team Flare grunts and others who naively thought in vain that using Belly Drum would have depleted Thomas's Pokemon's battle stamina, and under normal circumstances they would have been right.

Belly Drum was perhaps the most OP Pokemon move in ZOF terms, and since it maxed out a Pokemon's attack as well as the ZOF in their system to any limit they or Thomas Desired; that power was evenly distributed through that Pokemon's stat spread with the same pure power as the originally enhanced Attack Stat. This included their health, accuracy, stamina, and everything else. ZOF Prodigies were limited in how effectively they could use this move, but Thomas often hinted there was a higher ZOF God Tier still; one that could take Belly Drum to a whole new level. Team Flare didn't know how the ZOF affected a Pokemon's natural abilities though, and they didn't know how the ZOF and Pokemon moves mixed; how could they have? It didn't help that a powerful enough UV Pokemon could ignore the health depletion effect of Belly Drum altogether. Add to that the fact that Z-Belly Drum _healed_ any damage a Pokemon might have sustained on top of the lack of health depletion, and you had one of the most broken Pokemon in the history of the Omni-Omega-Omnisphere.

The ZOF had a way of turning level infinity UV mechanics on their heads; making things like STAB, the base power of moves, and stat boosting moves/abilities relevant again. It was probably the reason Thomas sought the Omega Omnisphere Champions out in the first place. Now, here he was… trouncing both her and Squishy once again and proving his mantel as second place member of the Big Five and runner-up for the Totality Championship Tournament finals; coming in second only to Ash Infinity himself. And let's be honest, once the ZOF, Supreme Evolution, and Omnium Z had leveled the playing field among the more seasoned competitors; few could hope to stop the original Double-O Champion and beat him at the very game he started. Thomas was probably the only Pokemon Trainer in their entire Omega Omnisphere who was talented enough to defeat Ash Infinity in a duel when both were at the top of their game, but still, Eureka knew she could have found no better teacher to deal her an impressive defeat. And it's not like this battle had anything big on the line anyways; some things were more important than winning some random duel for fun.

That said, if he thought she was going to give up right then and there; he had another thing coming, for she already had a counter strategy of her own waiting for him. "Squishy, pull away as fast as you can from the close fire range and launch a full powered Clear Smog. But first, infuse it with the Omni-Type attribute." She instructed as she and her Zygarde both felt the enormous spike in energy as Z-Geomancy took a hold of Xerneas and boosted its stats almost instantaneously, even from their perspective. She knew a regular Clear Smog would have been useless since Xerneas still had her Steel typing, compliments of the revised Reflect-Type technique Thomas had used. So, the Omni-Bypassing attribute would come in really handy right about now.

"I have to commend you for you well thought out strategy Bonnie; but this duel is already over." Thomas instructed in a matter-of-fact tone. There was no doubt in anyone's minds that he spoke the truth, even as Bonnie and Serena sat there wondering how Xerneas could possibly get any stronger. They knew these people broke reality on a scale previously unimagined, but still, the level of power they and their Pokemon possessed was just ridiculous. In what fucked up reality was such power even a necessity? As they contemplated this, Thomas shook his head with a sad smile. Sure, Eureka had come up with a counter strategy to his own to not only inflict super effective damage but also erase all Xerneas's stat boosts and the excess ZOF in her system, but it was too little, too late. Squishy would never be fast enough to score a direct hit; not at the level of speed and power Xerneas was at.

Z-Geomancy not only drastically boosted all her other stats; it also had the potential to max her Special offensive/defensive capabilities as well as her speed, which in turn meant the ZOF in her system would hit the Barrier all known ZOF prodigies abided by.

He was doing his best to teach Eureka how to survive as a Double-O Champion and a Zenith Omnidony, but against beings like Omninoir Infinity, his own Inverse Counterpart of sorts, or the other ZOF Prodigies he'd fought in the past; she'd be dead twenty times over by now. He knew he was being a complete and total hard ass by expecting so much from her when she was only just starting out; hell, she was doing almost as well as he did when he first started out back in the Small Pond Universe where they first met, but her current rate of improvement, it just wasn't cutting it.

"End this with a full force Twinkle Tackle!" Thomas said while executing a strange, almost girlish dance neither Serena nor Bonnie recognized, yet seemed to awaken the power of Fairies within Xerneas more than ever. Something about it almost seemed like a fighting form or stance of sorts; with a bit of the flamboyance and floweriness one expected Fairy-type Pokemon to embody. They sat there in stunned silence, gobsmacked and completely out of alignment with all they thought they knew.

The fabric of space was mutilated beyond recognition all around the Stadium as it became enshrouded in a pink-tinged dimension of endless proportions; with hearts and the occasional butterfly comprised of pure energy and varying shades of pink. Xerneas's whole body was faintly outlined with whatever supped up Fairy Aura Thomas had infused her with through the power of that ring; then she proceeded to prance about on the altered terrain in the general direction of Zygarde while exuding overwhelming, incandescent Fairy-type energy. It should have happened faster than either girl could have perceived, but apparently, Mafalda was allowing them to witness this battle as well as fill them in on details they ought to know about what was going down.

Xerneas reached Squishy and lightly nudged him over and over with her body, almost looking like she was toying with him relentlessly, yet with each tackle Squishy looked to be in excruciating pain; almost like the actual force she was hitting him with and how painfully he felt her attack weren't proportionate to one another. The attack ended with one, final, tumultuous tackle more powerful than any Serena or Bonnie had ever seen before, and the sound it made as Xerneas hit Squishy made Serena and especially Bonnie wince involuntarily. It catapulted the Mega Evolved Zygarde at ludicrous speed across the entire warped Fairy dimension.

He flew uncontrollably, and so fast he shattered the dimensional barrier of the Twinkle Tackle space with his body and reentered the normal battling arena, and more specifically the floor; with meteoric impact that shook the entire tower all the way down to its foundations. The only thing that kept Squishy's doppelganger from leveling the entire village was whatever Totality Preservation either Thomas or one of his Pokemon had in effect. But still, the sheer power behind that last attack set Serena's teeth on edge and had her gripping her seat for dear life on sheer principle.

Thomas didn't have to wait for the smoke to clear to know that the battle was finished; his Zenith Omnidony senses seeing the flash of green as Squishy went from the Supremely Evolved super behemoth to his normal Zygarde core form as Eureka ran out to him with worry in her gorgeous blue eyes. "Squishy, are you alright?!" She asked him tearfully as she scooped his exhausted form up in her eyes; earning a few _blobs_ of affirmation that he would live as she wiped the tears from her eyes.

"Thank goodness!" She sighed, letting go of a breath she didn't know she had been holding just as Xerneas returned to her base form as well and promptly returned herself to Thomas's astral gem, as he smiled with mixed pride and sadness over at his partner/trainee.

In his time and all his past lives, he'd taken on the role of teacher many times before, and he could honestly say that Eureka was one of his more promising students. He just hoped she was a long way away from facing any serious threat of the Zenith Omnidony caliber. Still, he didn't count on the ZOF waiting until he deemed her to be ready, and this Inverted Totality was already gearing up to test each one of them in the most brutal and demanding ways imaginable. He could feel a tension rising in the atmospherics of their new home away from home, and something deeper than gut instinct told him he and his newest travel buddy were going to be sticking around for quite a while. They'd have quite the fine mess thrust upon them too, of that there could be no doubt. Still, that was why he had come here; well, it was one of many reasons in all honesty… some of which he wasn't as inclined to discuss with Eureka or the others.

In his peripheral vision, he could see Bonnie and Serena still trying to decide if it was safe to move from their seats yet, and he felt a stab of sympathy. No doubt what he and Eureka just did would have scared them out of their wits; Thomas's people tended to do things on a rather… _extravagant_ scale, and that could be beyond imposing to first-timers.

Shaking his head to clear away the memories of all the times his capabilities had put even the most unflappable people on edge; Thomas made his way over to Eureka as she held Squishy's already recovered form in her hands, happy to see the little green planarian-like Entity up and about again… though he suspected he had a ZOF enhanced healing factor to thank for that. Eureka seemed just as thankful for it, if not even more so. "You did well Eureka, I'm very impressed!" He exclaimed happily once he reached her; glad to know he was being sincere. He wasn't just saying that; she did do very well for a new timer.

She smiled, though it didn't quite reach her eyes. "I still lost, and we've still got a long way to go before we're ready to graduate from being your students Thomas. I think even Squishy here agrees." She whispered while holding the Zygarde Core against her well-endowed chest, Squishy nodding in accord as Thomas's smile widened.

"We can work on that though Eureka… together. You may not be the most… prodigious student I've trained, but you've got an endless reservoir of heart, and that will take you further than any amount of talent alone ever could. Just keep training and you'll get there, I promise. I know it may not seem like it right now, but the training and these sparring matches really do help. You have to remember, I was young, rash, and eager to prove myself to. I've been where you're at right now Eureka." He promised her with a fond whisper as she smiled at him for real this time and Serena and Bonnie finally deemed it safe enough to make their way over to them. Eureka's Squishy quickly hopped into her satchel for a much-needed nap as her Dedenne gave him a congratulatory pat on the head from his part of her bag.

"Holy Arceus in Heaven above. That was…" Serena paused for a moment to try and find the right word to sum it all up in a nutshell as she and Eureka's counterpart, mirror Bonnie finally recovered their wits and rejoined the pair of them on the Stadium that was torn apart by the battle only seconds before but now looked good as new, likely Thomas's doing. It was a testament of sheer willpower on both their parts that Bonnie and Serena didn't freak out over every reality-breaking feat these people did like it was no big deal at all.

"Insane!" Bonnie supplied emphatically as Serena nodded in affirmation; both girls silently concurring that was a good word for what they just witnessed. Thomas nodded in what appeared to be sympathy as he pulled Eureka into a hug unexpectedly; causing her to yelp with surprise as she sunk into his arms and nuzzled into his chest.

"We'll make a fine Double-O Champion out of you yet Eureka; don't lose heart now." Thomas whispered soothingly into her ear as he traced his fingers on her back in slow, sensual, circular motions that had her resisting the urge to coo and moan in delight. She settled for sighing in blissful content instead, having missed this side of Thomas a lot in recent years; the side that was agonizingly affectionate yet never as much as she wanted him to be. The side that sought to take away all her pain and insecurities; to reassure her that everything would work out. She loved all sides of him of course, but this nurturing side held a special place in her heart.

"Thanks for that assessment Thomas, I needed that." she admitted sweetly.

"And I agree with you guys; this gets quite maddening for me as well. But even the most skilled illusionists and magicians can get disillusioned with their own tricks; given enough time of course." He sagely added to the other two people in the room as Bonnie and Serena both were skeptical.

"Do you ever truly get used to this?" Bonnie asked, directing the question at her counterpart Eureka instead of Thomas since he'd likely lived like this most of his life; his opinion would be a touch biased.

"Not really." Eureka admitted. "I mean, there's a level of desensitization to be sure, but I've known Thomas here for years now and he still finds countless ways to blow my mind and surprise me." She added with a look of adoration sent said Zenith Omnidony's way that sent him blushing madly as all three girls shared a laugh at his expense.

"Would you give it up if you had to do it all over again?" Serena couldn't help but wonder, not failing to notice how Thomas winced almost imperceptibly at the question. Eureka didn't even hesitate to respond.

"Are you kidding me?! I wouldn't give this up if my life depended on it! The whole of Reality could be at stake and I still wouldn't. I wouldn't trade my life with Thomas for _anything_. I love it too much to give it up now! Besides which, he needs me, and even if I felt differently about this lifestyle, I'd still chose to live it because I love him too much to abandon him at this point." Eureka admitted completely unabashed; having always been a straight shooter where her feelings were concerned but to be so honest about something as intimate as this?

It shocked her counterpart and Mirror Serena to their cores; even Thomas had developed an interest in his shoes by this point. The intensity in Eureka's gaze as she said this and the way she looked at him was almost more than he could bear. There was a lot he was keeping from her, and he was worried about letting her get too close to him in the event that he was unable to save himself from dying, but was it really fair to keep her at arms length either?

He had done things beyond imagining and had met even more incredible people, both males and females alike, and he had grown so close to so many of them... he hoped he wouldn't have to say goodbye to any of them for a very long time. Even just revealing that Myra the Blue Mew was Ash 9 by 6's ESIT soul mate had been enough to earn him said Mew's permanent respect and gratitude; a memory he would always cherish. The blowjob she had given him in her anthropomorphic form along with the rimjob she gave at the same time using her tail after he revealed said spoiler, had bloody near blown his balls off; leave it to a UV Mew to be preprogrammed for pleasing any and every species sexually.

The fact he had also given her a custom made Supreme Evolutionary form for when she and Ash finally got a clue about how the other felt and she joined his roster; would probably had gotten him laid once again had he been present when she first realized what his ' _surprise_ ' for her had been. It was also the form with which she happened to lead Ash's team to final victory during the cataclysmic war between them and their universe's Omninoir. After all of that, and after going to equal or even greater lengths for some of the other female Double-O Champions or Champions' Pokemon; he wondered to himself if these women who joined his harem with the consent of their main squeezes who also owed him debts of forever gratitude, held more than just lust or mere physical attraction towards him. He would certainly be pleased if they did, and hadn't felt this loved or cherish in a long time.

How many beautiful women in both personality and appearance had he touched the lives of; how many people would he be leaving behind once he was gone? For the first time in so many lifetimes; he not only had something worth living for, but also something to lose and everything to gain. He didn't want it to end here, and he was certain Eureka wouldn't want it to either. "Um, does he zone out like that often Eureka?" Bonnie asked somewhat awkwardly, wondering what could be on his mind and frustrated by his lack of readable facial expressions as Eureka nodded with a slight smile.

"Yeah, but it's been worse with him recently. Lately, he's been more secretive than usual, and his eyes just look so much younger but so troubled at the same time. I wish I could get him to tell me what was wrong, but he hasn't been forthcoming as of yet." She admitted, wishing Thomas would remain oblivious to their ongoing conversation about him. Unfortunately, his inattentiveness could only last so long, and given the rate at which his brilliant mind could operate; he could think an infinite number of thoughts in the span of a heartbeat and no one would be any the wiser until he opened that mouth of his.

"Sorry, got lost in some old memories; when you're as old as I am, they do tend to pile up. Picture like Santa Claus's workshop in a world with no Christmas for a hundred years, or Nuclear Weapons in a world strictly against unleashing Atomic Armageddon. Anyways, you guys get the picture now I hope. My point is, you don't need to worry about me; I know I may not look it, but I am older than any of you can imagine." Thomas said, waving off any concerns they might have had with that maddening grin of his he loved sporting so much. Eureka shook her head at his antics, not convinced he was being entirely forthcoming, but knowing him well enough to know he'd try and deal with what's bothering him alone for the longest he could until he exploded.

It was only a matter of time before the truth was brought to light, whether by his hand or someone else's. And as much as some of his enemies both terrified her and brought out the worst in her and others like her; she had to admit Zeneptron 30 aka his evil counterpart had a way of revealing whatever demons Thomas was fighting to everyone at large. Granted, it was always for the most malicious reasons and he had a way of putting a less than positive spin on all of Thomas's more questionable actions, but funnily enough, Eureka and the others could always count on their enemy to be more honest about their ally's predicament than Thomas himself was at times.

She honestly thought he had learned by now that she and the others could handle anything he did or didn't tell them; did he honestly think there was some deep, dark secret he was burying that would make her think less of him? There was nothing he could admit to that would cause her to love him any less; if anything, admitting he had faults would make him more human in their eyes and for a lot of the girls who shared and adored him, that was vital to loving him even more. Sure, there was some heavy stuff about his past that quirked more than a few eyebrows, but while his history was dark he himself was an inherently good person. He was also the most incorruptible Man of Infinities many of them had ever known; not because he wasn't ever tempted by the dark side of the ZOF, far from it. But because he was tempted by it, probably more than any of them were; for more reasons than any of them had to be tempted by it, yet he still managed to resist that urge.

He was the first ever example of a ZOF enhanced, Omega Omnisphere Champion of Pokemon in any version of Everything, and he'd touched the lives of more people than anyone could ever be able to count. He was also one of the oldest living ZOF Prodigies in the history of the Omni-Totality itself. He'd inspired all of them, brought out the best in them; highlighting their best characteristics while helping them to accept and make peace with their worst ones. He had been as much of a leader and an icon to them as Ash Infinity had been; even more so to some of the less Ash-centric people.

"Whatever is going on with you Thomas; you know the truth will come out eventually, and frankly I don't see why you bother at this point. I think we've made it pretty clear there's nothing about your past that can change our opinion of you; however perfectly imperfect we see you as." Eureka both promised and threatened while smirking, and Thomas offered her an appreciative, sheepish smile.

"There really is no fooling you is there? Don't worry, I plan on telling you eventually Eureka, but there's just some stuff I need to take care of first, in case things don't go the way I plan. I will say though, that for once... this actually has nothing to do with my past or past lives and is more oriented towards securing my future and the futures of the people and Pokemon I've grown to love so much. Do you think you can trust me enough to let me tell you when I'm ready?" He asked her in a gentle tone, his voice pleading as Eureka nodded; a loving smile on her face.

"I can wait until you're ready; trust me, if it's that important to you for me to wait... then I can wait forever. I just wanted to let you know that you're a lousy liar and transparent as all hell. You're not capable of being deceitful, and I'm glad for it to be honest; you've always worn your heart on your sleeve." She giggled as Thomas rolled his eyes.

' _Oh, come on, we all know it's true Thomas and you're not fooling anyone_.' The voice of Mafalda the Mew telepathed to all of them as Eureka gloated and everyone shared a chuckle at his expense. He was just about to make the suggestion for them to start their exploration of the new and Inverted Ultra-Verse when his eyes widened. He could feel someone approaching this world at a breakneck pace, and they were without a doubt ZOF Prodigy tier just as he was. Their ZOF-Energy signature was like a bloody bat signal with how much energy they were openly radiating, and Thomas arched an eyebrow as Eureka told Serena and Bonnie a story about him and Small Pond Serena; blissfully unaware to the being approaching all of them.

This person's openly displayed energy signature could indicate one of three things; either they were rank amateurs by ZOF Prodigy standards and were still new to all of it due to just recently gaining their powers, or they were trying to convey to him that they had good intentions despite approaching the planet like an impending, Omega Omnisphere sized asteroid through allowing him to sense them. The third possibility was they were making a show of approaching him and wanted to distill fear in him with their complete lack of a concealed presence. Thomas really hoped it was one of the former two, because the latter could prove to be a bit of a migraine. Thankfully, this signature was shockingly strong with the light side of the ZOF, and he'd long since learned to be aware of any falsified Zenith Omnidony projected auras, and could see the true intentions of nearly his Zenith Omnidony God Tier; regardless of how many Omega Omnispheres separated him and them at any given moment.

"So, this big old dork here is attending the dancing party thrown by Aria and Pierre as Serena's date, and he has this brilliant brain wave to give Serena's Eevee the power to shift between her various evolutionary stages on a whim; as well as the ability to evolve into some Omni-Type Eeveelution called Omneon instead of Sylveon. So, when he and Serena are selected for a Multi-Battle against Ash and Miette; he uses his Z-Ring to help boost Serena's Eevee's powers via Extreme Evoboost, and that's when things go to shit.

Basically, MOchu was a little too eager to impress his new lady crush and got a little bit carried away. So, just as Eevee finishes evolving into Omneon and Thomas is trying to explain what happened to her partner; Ash and Miette attack them as a unit and MOchu… he takes the hits for Omneon. It was the cutest act of love I've ever seen in a pair of Pokemon, and MOchu was completely knocked out of the competition; leaving Serena and Omneon to own both Ash and Miette with her Extreme Evoboosted stats and overwhelming ability and move pool.

Thomas was so proud of how far Serena and Eevee had come along in such a short time; though you can imagine MOchu's rock hard pride was extremely bruised. In the end though, he ended up cementing the newly evolved Omneon's trust and love towards him that day. Honestly, it was worth it to him even if he doesn't admit it." Eureka concluded a lengthy anecdote that had both mirror Serena and Bonnie in stitches while MOchu blushed from inside Thomas's astral gem, and that very same Omneon cuddled up against him with a loving coo while currently in her Sylveon form. None of them were paying attention to what was happening outside of Eureka's story telling; though some of them were already catching on.

' _Oh, don't look so sour MOchu… they're just having a little fun. Tell you what, I'll use my Cute Charm ability and give you a killer rimjob to make up for your embarrassment_.' Sylveon offered him from within the astral gem's infinitely spacious interior. MOchu's face went as red as his cheeks as his embarrassment faded into a perverted smile; his mate's recent change in personality from shy, romantic lover to a hot, kinky minx had thrown him for a serious loop. Not that he was complaining. He always liked stronger women who were confident in themselves, and if it helped build her up into the beauty he had grown to love more than life itself; MOchu would take those attacks for her a thousand times over just to achieve those very same results.

' _Um… not to be downer or anything guys but, what are we planning to do about this much too fast approaching ZOF signature_?' Aslan the Mewtwo queried logically, none of Thomas's Pokemon missing the mysterious smile that lit up their Trainer's face.

"I hate to interrupt you mid-stride, and in the middle of all these grand tales you're spinning Eureka, but we're about to have company." Thomas announced to the three females and their Pokemon, as said girls stopped laughing and Eureka's Squishy poked his head out of his Trainer's satchel. He looked to and fro with an almost frantic demeanor, and Thomas nodded towards the Zygarde core with a smile.

"You sense it too I take it Squishy." He stated. The planarian-like Entity nodded briskly while Eureka gazed at Thomas with furrowed eyebrows.

"What sort of company are we talking about here exactly? Good company or bad company?" She asked him with a note of worry as Serena and Bonnie looked between them confusedly and Thomas clapped his hands jovially.

"Oh Eureka, keep asking all the right questions and you'll keep getting answers. And to answer said question… it's the kind of company I came here to see in the first place." He whispered vaguely, looking entirely too pleased given the oddly cryptic undertone of everything that was happening.

"Alrighty then guys… let's go meet and greet our Extra-Omega-Omnispherical neighbors. _Alonso-Allonsy_!" he declared in a sing-song voice, yelling the last two words as though they were a catchphrase. Knowing Thomas, they probably were. Not expecting the madman to elaborate any further at this point; Serena, Bonnie, and Eureka waited with baited breath as whatever or whoever was coming to greet them drew ever nearer.

XXXXX

As she approached the alternate Pokemon world with all the speed and subtlety of an extinction-level asteroid; Molly managed to slow her forward momentum just enough to keep from reentering the world's atmosphere and setting the planet aflame.

' _Note to self, when trying to gain some extra help from another ZOF Prodigy; refrain from blowing up the planet said being has taken up refuge in. Well, at least I managed to check that off my to-do list; even if it was kind of last minute_.' She mused internally; allowing a sheepish smile to form on her flawless face at the thought of what insanity could have ensued had she not had any sort of control over her powers.

As she floated up in the ozone layer, looking down upon this alternate world from the heavens; she couldn't help but wonder what this new Zenith Omnidony would be like. Would he even agree to help them? Why was he here? Which ZOF Prodigy was he? She had the ability to recognize other ZOF energy signatures, but she hadn't lived anywhere near long enough or met enough of her kind to distinguish which energy signatures were which Gods. She knew of the Omni-Omega-Omnispherical grapevine and about ZOF myths, legends, and rumors; all of that was more or less familiar to her… but she had met so few of her people other than Ash or her Pokemon, that she had no idea whose energy signatures she was reading throughout the Omega Omnispheres.

It was a bit frustrating, but she could learn to get past it. She had no doubt felt this presence before though; in the Double-O immediately preceding theirs most substantially but also in hundreds more as well. Whoever this person was, they were old enough to have lived through hundreds of versions of Totality. Unfortunately, many ZOF energy signatures were present in various Omega Omnispheres… as past or future incarnations of that same person, so, it didn't exactly narrow down her list of potential candidates.

Molly was essentially flying blind, but she trusted her instincts and believed in her ability to get out of any situation if need be; her Pokemon were also there to help inside the pocket Totality she'd created for them. She was nervous about the possibility of this person needing to be persuaded to join their cause, but she was prepared to convince him by any means necessary. She'd do _anything_ to gain help in bringing Ash, _her_ Ash, back to the light side of the ZOF.

' _Molly, you must never stop believing in yourself. If you lose heart now, you won't be able to tap into your full power. Never give up hope, love is the strongest force in the entire Omni-Totality_.' Entei reminded her from inside her pocket Totality; the very same Entei the Unown had created for her as a surrogate father, back in her native universe long before all this Double-O Championship stuff came about. She thought she would never see her beloved, dreamed up Entei outside the world of her dreams ever again; that being able to befriend an Entei or other legendary Pokemon was not the reality she lived in. But that all changed when Ash's mysterious Infinity doppelganger came into her life, and it hadn't been love at first sight by any stretch of the imagination.

He had been a complete and total dick at that time, and after having lost his previous love during his final battle with Omninoir Infinity who could blame him? Still, despite his determination to never go back to saving people; despite just wanting to settle down and live a peaceful, quiet life free from having to intervene day in and day out, he still decided to save her. She had left her Pokemon Team in her room at Nurse Jenny's Pokemon Center to rest and recuperate; before deciding to take a leisurely stroll through the Alola Region's largest city.

It was then that she found herself cornered by some Team Skull nuts who planned to rape her, since she didn't have any Pokemon on her for them to steal. She could remember feeling terrified and like she was going to die; she could remember the way Ash swooped in and saved her like the vigilante he probably was at that point. She didn't know about his powers back then, and he stuck to a loose street fighting style when dispatching the grunts; it didn't exactly scream ' _I'm a beyond invincible super God_ ' outright.

He saved her life, and then he just walked away; leaving her behind without a word and forcing her to pursue him to try and thank him. Long story short, he was a colossal prick who insisted she forget their encounter by way of thanks; she refused to let it go, followed him to the house he lived at, went back to visit him multiple times throughout the following weeks, and the rest was basically history. He accompanied her on her journey through the Alola Region despite having traversed alternate versions of it at least a dozen times, and when he realized she was his predestined ESIT soul mate his attitude toward her changed immensely in all the best possible ways.

Reuniting her with her dream Entei and giving him his own custom made Supreme Evolution form had been his first of many gifts to her, and the moment she opened that Pokeball and the Legendary Entity she never thought she would see again popped out… she realized she had fallen in love with a God who could break all reality like it was absolutely nothing. He spoiled her day in and day out; helped her and her Pokemon train and break in their new ZOF enhanced powers that he gave them, and taught her everything he could about the Omega Omnisphere Champions and the Zenith Omnidonae. He was her mentor, friend, lover, and so much more on top of that; he was her everything, but while she could see he himself was hurting inside, she never forced the issue as much as she should have.

' _I failed him… He was always there for me, cared for me more than anyone else ever did, and he never judged me for my actions back in Greenfield like so many others did. But I couldn't even be there for him when he needed me most_.' She remembered how broken he looked towards the end, how he went steadily darker and darker; how she had tried to ignore it most of the time and never confronted him on it until it was too late. She remembered everything, but above all; when he asked her to go with him… for the two of them to run away together so far away from any Omega Omnisphere that no one would ever find them, and she declined.

She loved living the life he had given her too much to give it up now; having always desired a life and reality where all things were possible no matter how absurd. He'd given her that life, and she couldn't understand why he only wanted to settle down somewhere peaceful and remote and start a family. She had been so selfish, and her heart still ached to this day upon remembering the look of absolute betrayal he'd given her at that moment. ' _Oh Ash, if I could go back to that day… I'd never reject your offer to run away with you again. I'm sorry, I'm so, so sorry; I wish more than anything that I could take it all back_.' Molly refused to let the tears fall right now, not wanting to show that kind of weakness in front of a potential enemy when they saw her. She needed to remain composed, and no matter how much she might have wanted to break down and cry; she had a job to do.

She knew she had the power to go back and change that; create a new potential future for Ash IB and herself, but the timeline of a ZOF Prodigy was almost impossible to change in any case; completely impossible to do so without major Omni-Totality backlash of some kind. As horrible as this version of events was; she'd have to find a way to make the best of it and hopefully convince Ash that she wasn't going to back out on him again. She refused to let him run away without her this time; she'd promised to always be on his ass every time he tried.

' _Are you okay Molly? Your ESIT aura is radiating sadness_.' Her Teddiursa asked her, having always been sensitive to her Trainer's feelings as Molly nodded and managed a smile.

"I'm okay Teddy; just getting caught up in some bittersweet memories… now, let's go meet this new player." She announced to all her Pokemon at large as everyone cheered besides the ever stoic and perfectly composed Entei. Entei was her signature Pokemon, and arguably her strongest. He was also the only one she had currently with the power to achieve Supreme Evolution. Her modified Keystone with the power of Supreme Evolution was in a simple Mega Bracelet on her left hand; her Z-Ring with the Omnium Z on her right.

She knew that her Ash Infinity was the original user of both that Z Crystal and Supreme Evolution in their indigenous Omega Omnisphere, but he wasn't their original creators in every Totality. That honor belonged to a famous ZOF Prodigy who once lived in the previous Double-O; though he had vanished during an Omni-Omniversal crisis in that UV's Alola Region… and nobody had heard from him since. Many believed he died, since there were no known future versions of Thomas Infinity beyond that point in Omni-Totality's history, but Molly caught herself wondering if he had simply up and vanished. Perhaps he simply ran away from all the pain of living in the Omega Omnispheres and settled down somewhere quiet and remote, just like Ash had planned to before she fucked him up.

She shrugged at her own internal thoughts, deciding the time had come for her and this mysterious Zenith Omnidony Prodigy to meet face to face. She could sense his presence even up here in the ozone layer, and with one last sigh she descended as slowly as she could manage towards the alternate Lumiose Village and a certain towering landmark. She didn't know it then, but Molly was about to meet someone who would change her life forever in all the best possible ways; someone whom she could become as close to as she was to Ash. If she had known that moment that her life was about to turn upside down and inside out; she might have been more hesitant to proceed. As it was, she was no more aware of her personal timeline than any other ZOF Prodigy or mortal alike.

XXXXX

' _They're on their way up the elevator to Lumiose Village's gym; which means this person knows our precise location now_.' Mafalda telepathed to everyone, including Eureka, Bonnie and Serena; the latter two of whom had long since gotten used to the voices in their heads and barely even flinched at it. Eureka looked as nervous as they both felt, and only Thomas was crazy enough to be grinning with mad anticipation. His confidence would have reassured Eureka if she hadn't known the fact that he tended to get off on unimaginably dangerous situations; the guy was about as mental as they came and he was always reckless and quick to throw himself into the Omni-Totality's crises.

"So, looks like we're about to meet our first ZOF enhanced Double-O Champion from this Omega Omnisphere, and they're a relatively new one too. There's no sign or trace of this person's ESIT Aura or Unfathomable Energy Signature in any Totality prior to this one so that means they were born and created here. I must admit, I'm excited by the prospect of Double-O Pokemon Champions becoming a constant in the Omni-Totality now. I may not have had everything to do with that, but I'm definitely the reason ZOF-enhanced versions of them exist, and that's something I take immense pride in if I'm being perfectly frank." Thomas rambled excitedly as Eureka shook her head in mild exasperation.

So, they were up against someone who was quite possibly on Thomas's own power level; that made her pray to whatever ZOF Masters there still were that this person would turn out friendly. She was reassured by the fact that they seemed to be taking their time to get to them, and using the elevator instead of just rushing in headlong to attack them seemed human enough for this mystery man. Bonnie and Serena were just glad they had one of these people on their side to protect their world in case everything went to shit.

Serena was relatively confident in Thomas's ability to safeguard them; though she found his eccentricities to be a bit in poor taste given these circumstances. Bonnie was just hoping he knew what he was doing. Despite their opinions about the man, both Bonnie and Serena silently agreed there was no one they'd rather protect their earth from potential threats of this caliber.

Thomas could hear the Elevator door opening with a ding, and a pair of dainty feet walking towards the currently ajar gym doors where they stood waiting for them. Eureka held her breath and refused to let her guard down until she knew for absolute certainty that this person didn't constitute any sort of threat. Given Thomas's irritating vagueness about what sort of person he sensed; she wasn't going to take any chances and regret it later. For all she knew, this could have been a twisted idea of his to try and up the intensity of her training; pitting her against a ZOF Prodigy that meant to do her and her friends genuine harm.

The person was finally within sight as they tentatively set foot within the Pokemon Gym and both Bonnie and Serena looked surprised and confused when they saw a woman around Bonnie's age. She waved at all of them welcomingly, with a perfect smile as she made her way towards them, and the first thought that crossed all their minds was how unbelievably gorgeous she was. Eureka had no idea who this person was anymore than her doppelganger and mirror Serena did, and looking back at Thomas, she saw him quirking an eyebrow in obvious intrigue.

' _Molly Hale huh? That's a new one_.' He flippantly remarked inside his head, having never encountered a version of her who was a Double-O Champion or ZOF Prodigy before now and feeling excitement mounting at the newness of this situation. He loved it when things like this happened; things that genuinely took him off balance and just new things in general.

It slowly dawned on him that she had the potential to appeal to the ZOF for the right to become recognized Omni-Omniversally as Molly Hale IB; a title only one version of a Zenith Omnidony can attain in any Omega Omnisphere. It was the same as how there could be extra-omniversal counterparts of Appaneesty Infinity but only one Appaneesty Infinity and Beyond. It was a very special title that was Omni-Omniversally unique. The one who ended up winning the title and becoming recognized as the IB version of themselves; could also have the ZOF barrier lifted off them in accordance with the fundamental laws of Omni-Totality. He himself had considered appealing to the ZOF for the right to become Thomas Currie IB, but knew he would face some heavy competition in the form of his evil twin. But how many ZOFed versions of Molly Hale could there be really?

As she got closer Thomas got a better look at her, and his jaw almost dropped as his ESIT Aura and hers instantly reacted to one another momentarily. Her eyes fell on his, and for a moment they were locked on each other as Thomas took in all her features. She was like a mix of the adult Molly who battled Brock in the third movie, as well as the teenage one who battled Misty; with the body and build of the former and the clothing choice of the latter. She wore white over the knee socks that gave him a painful flashback of Small Pond Serena who favored those types of socks, but aside from that she didn't share too many other similarities. Her blonde hair was a different shade, her blue eyes lighter and sparkling like the ocean when the sun glanced off it just right.

Her hair had that blue ribbon around it that he'd seen in the third movie as well, and her top was a mostly blue dress that hugged her in all the right places… leaving enough to the imagination that Thomas's infinitely imaginative mind had to supply most of the unnecessary imagery of what laid beneath; though he couldn't deny how beautiful she had to look just under the surface. AIB knows she was beautiful enough with her clothes _on_.

The way his fluxed ESIT Aura reacted to hers so strongly was unnerving, but not unexpected; given the state of his soul bond with Misty 726/Serena 9BI the last time they met… but it was still a bit worrisome. Hers seemed to be equally in flux; which is likely the reason why they both reacted in the first place. He wondered what had happened to hers, even while he knew he couldn't allow himself to get close like that to anyone unless he figured out a way to cheat his impending death once again. His regeneration cycle was at its limit, and until he found a way to bypass that limit without having to drain another Prodigy's ZOF Energy or fight his Evil Counterpart to the death in order to claim an IB title... he was stuck as he was for the time being.

The fact that this Molly Hale was such a shining beacon of hope in both the ESIT and ZOF fascinated him; she was remarkably pure, and hoped he could help her with whatever problem she was dealing with. He wondered if keeping his distance was really doing him any favors; the way his body and ESIT signature were both reacting to this girl made him question his ways as of late. ' _I think you've been depriving yourself of shit like this for too long bitch. I say to hell with it and live a little man. Seriously, Zina told you to make the most of whatever time you have left and live for once… did she not? Besides, wouldn't it be best to get off as much as you can in the event that you snuff it_?' MOchu reminded him crassly, and Thomas smirked as Molly reached them and seemed more aware of his presence than anyone else's in the room.

' _I can sense he wields a great degree of wisdom, and I know he can help us, though his manner of dress is a little bit strange_.' She noted to herself, the strange man standing in the center of this group no doubt the ZOF Prodigy whose presence she'd been sensing earlier. First thing she noticed were his eyes, breathtakingly beautiful and a blend of every color in the entire visible spectrum; of such otherworldly intensity one might have thought they were contact lenses. Her gaze traveled down a bit, taking in his top hat and raking over his flawless facial structure and his perfectly symmetrical musculature and bodily structure in general. No doubt he possessed a great deal of physical strength, and his ZOF Energy seemed to be in peak physical form.

She could see the powerful tapestry of muscles lining his upper body and arms even beneath the tweed jacket and the black tee shirt with the rainbow-colored infinity symbol etched on it. And though she couldn't see them, she could feel the presences of both his Pokemon and the Supreme Evolution keystone and Omnium Z crystal on his left and right arms respectively; all of which were enhanced with the ZOF much the same as their owner/Trainer. She had to stifle the urge to giggle at the very out of place, pink and purple polka dotted bowtie that clashed horribly with the brown of his tweed jacket, and the black of his other clothes including his top hat.

Her urge to laugh however, was cut short when she saw the intensity of his gaze as he focused on her own features; the look of a man who was withholding his own ZOF enhanced urges. She had to respect him for not x-raying her or otherwise violating her privacy; most male ZOF Prodigies wouldn't have had that kind of legendary control, for understandable reasons of course given how strong their libido was… well, except Ash Infinity that is. It wasn't a gender specific thing though; females could be just as bad, but Ash had taught Molly well. This person wasn't the only one who'd noticed their ESIT auras reacting to one another either; she felt it too, and was both surprised and somewhat scared of the implications. Was Ash Infinity's recent turning to the dark side having a negative effect on their bond; was her ESIT aura in a state of flux because of it? She couldn't help but wonder if she and this other ZOF Prodigy were in the same boat regarding their respective bond mates, and felt a sympathy for him she wouldn't have otherwise. She knew the pain he felt and wouldn't wish that kind of situation on anyone; not even her worst enemies.

She also wondered a second thing, whether it was normally possible for ZOF Prodigies to bind themselves to more than one forever love mate, or if her doing so now was unheard of before this point. Ash had told her that while regular ON members mated for eternity and some mortal species mated for life; Zenith Omnidonae and ZOF Prodigies mated for even longer still. They could mate for endless eternities and even an endless set of endless eternities; maybe even longer than that… but the question remained whether they could mate for so long with more than one person. It had never even been discussed; Molly had only loved Ash at that time and was perfectly happy with the idea of just the two of them being together literally forever. Now though, she was curious about whether a Zenith Omnidony could be bonded to more than one mate forever; she honestly didn't know if it was simply her unique situation with her Ash putting her in flux or if she actually had more than one predestined mate. If it turned out to be the latter, she wanted to get to know this individual first before she consummated with him.

The amount of time her kind were capable of living for would give almost any mortal a major headache while trying to wrap their heads around it, but she was certain she fared better than most even back when she was still mortal. Now though, it seemed she was experiencing the same emotional surges with this ZOF Prodigy as she had with Ash Infinity himself, and she honestly wasn't sure what to do about it. Maybe Ash going dark and leaving her behind had put her ESIT Aura or signature into a state of flux, or maybe it simply wasn't as uncommon for her pantheon to have more than one forever mate as she thought.

All these thoughts, feelings, and realizations went through her head before she even uttered a single world, and she could sense the two lemon haired girls and Serena's non-UV compliant doppelganger growing impatient with her. For the past few minutes or so, her entire thought process had done a complete 180 and kept circling around and around between Ash Infinity and this stranger; whom was remarkably like Ash in his own way. Or maybe Ash was like him? Was that the same thing? Ugh, she couldn't even think properly anymore and decided to speak at long last before her brain ceased functioning altogether.

"Okay… um, hi." Molly finally murmured while attempting break the ice, her face flushing with embarrassment at the lameness of her initial statement as Thomas couldn't help but chuckle at the girl's awkwardness while Eureka, Bonnie, and Serena all waved. There was an uncomfortable atmosphere in the air, and Thomas realized it would fall to him to get to the crux of the matter here.

"Molly Hale as one of the Omega Omnisphere Champions of this Totality, and a ZOF enhanced version at that. I've gotta say that's a first in my book, and I don't get to say that very often anymore. Well, ' _hi_ ' to you too miss Hale. I'm Thomas Currie's Infinity counterpart, and this is my friend Eureka, her Extra-Omniversal counterpart from this universe Bonnie, and the Serena Yvonne of this universe as well. I have just one question before we get started… would you like a Jelly Baby?" Thomas introduced the four of them with a maddening grin as Molly couldn't help but smirk back at him; regaining a semblance of confidence and coherence. This was going to be a very interesting conversation indeed. She had just come face to face with the legendary ZOF Prodigy she'd just been thinking about up in this world's ozone layer. There was the old saying that one ought to never meet their heroes, but she had a strong suspicion that wasn't going to be true in this case.

She couldn't believe it; her meta luck finally paid off for her in a positive way and brought her the one ZOF Prodigy in all the Omega Omnispheres who could've saved Ash. If even _half_ of the stories she'd heard about this guy were true; then their Totality was in even better hands than she thought. Her Ash Infinity was about to be in for the shock of a lifetime; she couldn't wait to introduce the two of them officially once she brought her Ash back to the light, and for the first time in so many years, she felt truly optimistic about their chances of snapping him back to his senses again. Sure, there was a long way to go and maybe she was premature in her thoughts of this person, but she believed he could change their Omega Omnisphere for the better; given enough time that is.

"You guys might want to sit down… this is going to be a fairly lengthy anecdote, and my story is not as happy or cheerful as my bright and positive demeanor would indicate." She told them as she absentmindedly accepted the proffered British candy from Thomas; having recovered her full coherence by now, and ready to sit them through it as Thomas nodded with inappropriately gleeful anticipation, and the three women he befriended following suit as a couple of comfy leather seats appeared from out of thin air inside the Gym itself. Taking a deep breath, Molly tried not to let herself become jealous of this living legend's closeness to Eureka; having been a fan of Thomas Infinity's legacy as a ZOF Prodigy for a long time now. She prepared to launch into the story of their Omega Omnisphere and version of the Ultra-Verse, and how their Ash Infinity went from the shining, beloved leader of their Omega Omnisphere's Mightiest Pokemon Champions to the monster he was becoming today.


End file.
